New Delhi: On Monday, the Congress raised new concerns about Vinod Adani's alleged web of shell companies involved in "opaque" financial transactions and claimed that Prime Minister Narendra Modi had his "drumbeaters" get Parliament adjourned to prevent the demand for a JPC investigation into the Adani issue from being brought up.
Jairam Ramesh, the general secretary of the Indian opposition party Congress, said that new information disproves Adani Group's "laughable fiction" that Vinod Adani, the elder brother of conglomerate chairperson Gautam Adani, is not involved in group administration or decision-making.
The opposition has continued its attacks on the administration for weeks after Adani Group stocks fell on the bourses as a result of claims of illegal activities and share-price manipulation made by US-based short seller Hindenburg Research.—Inputs from Agencies

On Monday, the Congress raised new concerns about Vinod Adani's alleged web of shell companies involved in "opaque" financial transactions and claimed that Prime Minister Narendra Modi had his "drumbeaters" get Parliament adjourned to prevent the demand for a JPC investigation into the Adani issue from being brought up.

PM's "drumbeaters" adjourned Parl to prevent JPC demand on Adani issue: Cong

New Delhi: Reiterating the Opposition’s demand for a Joint Parliamentary Committee (JPC) probe into the Adani issue, Congress president Mallikar-jun Kharge on Wednesday said they want to know how businessman Gautam Adani “made crores of rupees within 2.5 years.”
Talking to ANI, Mallikarjun Kharge said, “All of us are going to meet the Director of ED to submit a memorandum into Adani’s scam. But the Government is not letting us anywhere near Vijay Chowk. They have stopped us. There is a scam of lakhs of Rupees. LIC, SBI and other banks are destroyed”. The Congress national president said that there should be an inquiry in the Adani issue.
Attacking the Centre further, Kharge said, “The government is giving money to one man to purchase government properties. PM is encouraging someone who had fewer assets earlier but now expanded to Rs 13 Lakhs Crores worth of assets. How did it happen? Who is responsible? Who is giving the money? There should be an inquiry. What is the relation between PM Modi and Adani?” The Leader of Opposition in the Upper House further alleged that the government wants to “suppress” their voices.
“We all MPs from 17-18 political parties are here and we want to know how Adani made lakhs and crores of rupees within 2.5 years? They have stopped us here. We are 200 and there are 2000 police personnel here, so they want to suppress our voices,” Kharge further said.
Leader of Opposition in Lok Sabha, Adhir Ranjan Chowdhury also attacked the Centre and said that a JPC probe will “expose” BJP.
“We demanded a Joint Parliamentary Committee (JPC) for investigation of Adani issue. However, the BJP doesn’t want a JPC as it will bring out the corruption and expose their real face. They wanted a JPC till they were in opposition, now they are scared,” the Congress leader said.
The Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) MP Sanjay Singh also hit out at the centre stating, “ED should register an FIR and start probing the matter. Why is the Adani issue not being investigated? PM Modi is India’s Prime Minister or Adani’s Prime Minister? The nation wants to know”. Amid the ongoing second phase of the Parliament Budget Session, leaders of several opposition parties on Wednesday afternoon started a protest march from the Parliament to Enforcement Directorate (ED) office here.
Notably, Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) and Trinamool Congress (TMC) are not participating in the protest march.
Heavy security has been deployed at the Vijay Chowk in wake of the protest march by the leaders of the Opposition parties.
The police made announcements at Vijay Chowk and told the marching Opposition MPs not to march ahead as Section 144 CrPC is imposed and no agitation is allowed in the area.
Earlier today, several Opposition MPs, gathered for a meeting over the Adani Group issue at the Rajya Sabha leader of the opposition and Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge’s Parliament chamber.
The Opposition has been raising the Adani issue and demanding a Joint Parliamentary Committee (JPC) probe into the Hindenburg-Adani report.
The second leg of the Budget session of Parliament resumed after a month-long break on Monday. The recess was for enabling the department-related Parliamentary Standing Committees to examine the demands for grants and make reports relating to their ministries or departments.
The Parliament has also faced repeated disruptions amid the protest and ruckus in the house over regular protests by the Opposition.
Earlier on Monday, 16 parties participated in the Opposition party leaders’ meeting chaired by Leader of Opposition in Rajya Sabha Mallikarjun Kharge in Parliament.
Indian National Congress; Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (DMK), Samajwadi Party; Janata Dal (United); Aam Admi Party; Communist Party of India (Marxist); Kerala Congress; Nationalist Congress Party; Communist Party of India; Indian Union Muslim League; Shiv Sena (Uddhav Thackeray); Marumalarchi Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam; Rashtriya Janata Dal; Jharkhand Mukti Morcha; Viduthalai Chiruthaigal Katchi and the NC participated in the meeting.
The concerned report from US-based short-seller firm Hindenburg Research surfaced on January 24 claiming that the Adani Group had weak business fundamentals, and was involved in stock manipulation and accounting fraud, among others. It is pertinent to mention that the Supreme Court set up an expert committee on the issue arising from the Hindenburg Research report on Adani Group companies. The committee will consist of six members, headed by former apex court judge Justice AM Sapre.
—ANI

 Reiterating the Opposition’s demand for a Joint Parliamentary Committee (JPC) probe into the Adani issue, Congress president Mallikar-jun Kharge on Wednesday said they want to know how businessman Gautam Adani “made crores of rupees within 2.5 years.”

We Want To Know How Adani Made Crores Of Rupees Within 2.5 Years: Kharge

New Delhi: On Saturday, the Congress said the administration was doing nothing to reach a deal with the opposition and break the stalemate in Parliament.
Jairam Ramesh, head of the Congress party, said that compromise has not been reached in Parliament and that this year's budget session could end up being a failure for the first time.
He also criticised the government for rushing through major legislation and the budget with little to no debate in the midst of parliamentary disturbances. "If the JPC demand is in the trash, the legislation will be passed in the commotion," he lamented.—Inputs from Agencies

On Saturday, the Congress said the administration was doing nothing to reach a deal with the opposition and break the stalemate in Parliament.

Bills will be carried in the din if opposition's JPC demand is ignored: Congress

New Delhi: On Thursday, the Congress claimed a Joint Parliamentary Committee is needed to determine who weakened and then deleted the basic rule in this regard to benefit the Adani group. The Congress also requested that SEBI guarantee thorough disclosure of ownership of Foreign Portfolio Investors from retrospective effect.
The demands were made a day after the Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI), which regulates India's financial markets, recommended enforcing more information regarding the holding of high-risk Foreign Portfolio Investors (FPIs).
To help the Adani Group, Congress general secretary for communications Jairam Ramesh said that the market regulator is now looking to tighten the rule that it was "forced to dilute" in December 2018 and its removal in August 2019.—Inputs from Agencies

On Thursday, the Congress claimed a Joint Parliamentary Committee is needed to determine who weakened and then deleted the basic rule in this regard to benefit the Adani group.

Cong wants JPC probe of SEBI's "forced diluting" FPI disclosure standards to favour Adani

New Delhi: Union IT Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw dismissed the Digital Data Protection Bill as a "normal bill" on Friday, hours after Congress leader Manish Tewari claimed the government should try to get it categorised as a money bill.
Earlier today, Tewari proposed that the Data Protection Bill be treated like any other bill and sent back to a JPC for further review.
Although it was initially thought to be a monetary law, Union Minister for Electronics and Information Technology (MeitY) Vaishnaw later referred to it as a "normal bill" when it was introduced in the Lok Sabha.—Inputes from Agencies

Union IT Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw dismissed the Digital Data Protection Bill as a "normal bill" on Friday, hours after Congress leader Manish Tewari claimed the government should try to get it categorised as a money bill.

Cong's Manish Tewari says Data Protection Bill being classified as money bill, govt refutes charge

Mumbai: Senior Congress leader Rahul Gandhi on Thursday reiterated the demand for a Joint Parliamentary Committee (JPC) probe into the Adani matter, and also asked Prime Minister Narendra Modi to break his silence on this issue. Addressing a press conference ahead of the opposition I.N.D.I.A. bloc's third meeting here, Rahul Gandhi referred to a new report by the OCCRP (Organised Crime and Corruption Reporting Project), which allegedly found at least two cases where "mysterious" investors bought and sold Adani stock through offshore structures.  Showing reports published by global newspapers copies on this issue, Rahul Gandhi said: “There was an investigation… evidence was given to SEBI but it gave a clean chit to (Gautam) Adani. The gentleman who gave clean chit to Adani is today a Director in NDTV. It is very clear that there is something very wrong here.” "We are trying to show the world that 'we are a transparent economy'. We are trying to show the world that India has a level playing field," he said. Firing salvos at the Central government, Rahul Gandhi said, “Why is this one gentleman who is close to the Prime Minister allowed to move a billion dollars to pump up his share price, to use that money to capture Indian assets, airports, ports? Why no investigation is taking place?  “Its very important that Prime Minister Narendra Modi clears his name and categorically explains what is going on. At the very least, a JPC should be allowed, a thorough investigation should be conducted. “I don’t understand why the Prime Minister is not allowing an investigation. Why is he quiet, why doesn’t he say that he is going to make sure that this issue is investigated and the people who are guilty are put behind bars."  The former Congress President said that this raises very serious questions on the Prime Minister, just before the arrival of global leaders to India for the G20 meet. “They are going to be asking questions -- What is this special company that is owned by a gentleman close to the Prime Minister? Why an economy like India giving this gentleman a free ride? They are going to ask these questions. I think it is very important that these matters are cleared before they arrive,” he said.  Referring to the news reports, Rahul Gandhi said, “These are not random newspapers, these are newspapers that affect investment in India. They affect the perception of our country in the rest of the world. They are stating clearly that over a billion dollars went from India, were circulated in different places, and then came back to India. This is, according to them, clearly proved with the documentation they have.  “The first question is, whose money is this? Is it Adani ji’s money or any other person's? The mastermind behind this is a gentleman called Vinod Adani, who is the brother of Gautam Adani. There are two foreign nationals who are involved in round-tripping of the money. Why are these two foreign nationals being allowed to play with the valuation of one of the companies that controls almost all of Indian infrastructure?”  The remarks came after the OCCRP report alleged that "opaque" funds were used to funnel substantial investments into the publicly traded stocks of the Adani Group, purportedly masking the involvement of business partners associated with the Adani family. The Adani Group, on its part, has rejected the OCCRP report alleging stock manipulation.  “We categorically reject these recycled allegations. These news reports appear to be yet another concerted bid by Soros-funded interests supported by a section of the foreign media to revive the meritless Hindenburg report. In fact, this was anticipated, as was reported by the media last week,” the Group said.  “These claims are based on closed cases from a decade ago when the Directorate of Revenue Intelligence (DRI) probed allegations of over invoicing, transfer of funds abroad, related party transactions and investments through FPIs.  “An independent adjudicating authority and an appellate tribunal had both confirmed that there was no over-valuation and that the transactions were in accordance with applicable law. The matter attained finality in March 2023 when the Supreme Court of India ruled in our favour. Clearly, since there was no over-valuation, there is no relevance or foundation for these allegations on transfer of funds.  “Notably, these FPIs are already part of the investigation by the Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI). As per the Expert Committee appointed by the Supreme Court, there is no evidence of any breach of the Minimum Public Shareholding (MPS) requirements or manipulation of stock prices," it added.  As per the report, exclusive documents obtained by OCCRP and shared with The Guardian and Financial Times, including files from multiple tax havens, bank records, and internal Adani Group emails, shed light on that very matter.  These documents, which have been corroborated by people with direct knowledge of the Adani Group’s business and public records from multiple countries, show how hundreds of millions of dollars were allegedly invested in publicly-traded Adani stock through opaque investment funds based in Mauritius, the report said. —IANS

Senior Congress leader Rahul Gandhi on Thursday reiterated the demand for a Joint Parliamentary Committee (JPC) 

Rahul reiterates demand for JPC probe into Adani matter, cites OCCRP report

Mumbai: Congress leader Rahul Gandhi on Thursday asked Prime Minister Narendra Modi to come clean on fresh allegations against the Adani Group and said he must order a Joint Parliamentary Committee (JPC) probe into them as India's reputation is at stake ahead of the G20 summit in the country.
Launching a scathing attack on the Bharatiya Janata Party-led government at the Centre, Gandhi said at a press conference this is a 'national issue' and all opposition parties are together on the matter.
There are no differences within the INDIA alliance over the issue, asserted the Congress MP, who is in Mumbai to take part in a two-day conclave of the opposition bloc that began at a luxury hotel.
He claimed the ruling party is in 'panic' on the Adani issue and that is why a special session of Parliament has been convened from September 18.
Referring to the fresh set of allegations made by some top global financial dailies that there is a 'relationship' between Adani and Prime Minister Modi, Gandhi said this is affecting the country's global image and its reputation is at stake just before the G20 summit.
He asked why central probe agencies like the Enforcement Directorate (ED) and the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) are not investigating Adani.
"India's reputation is on the line...This is damaging the image of the country and therefore the Prime Minister should take action immediately and say that a JPC will probe this and a full-scale investigation will take place on the Adani issue," Gandhi said.
The G20 leaders' summit at the level of Heads of State/Government is scheduled to be held on September 9 and 10 in New Delhi. India currently holds the presidency of the influential intergovernmental forum of the world's major developed and developing economies.
Asked about the convening of the special session of Parliament from September 18 and what it indicates, the Lok Sabha MP said, "I think, it's an indicator of a little panic, same type of panic that happened when I spoke in Parliament house, panic that suddenly made them revoke my Parliament membership."
"So, I think, it is panic because these matters are very close to the Prime Minister and whenever you touch the Adani matter, the Prime Minister gets very uncomfortable and very nervous," he noted.
India has said there is a level-playing field, India is transparent and there is no corruption, but the revelations are putting the reputation of the country and the Prime Minister under question, the opposition leader maintained.
He noted that while India is trying to show to the world it is a transparent economy and has a level-playing field, the question that arises is that 'this one gentleman who is close to the Prime Minister of India was allowed to move a billion dollars and pump up the share price'.
"Why is there no investigation taking place? It is very important that the Prime Minister clears his name and categorically explains what is going on. At the very least, a JPC should be allowed and a thorough investigation should take place," Gandhi said.
He claimed papers are saying there is a relationship between Adani and Modi, the question is what is that relationship.
The former Congress president asked why agencies such as the ED and the CBI are not interrogating Adani.
"I can't understand why the Prime Minister is not forcing an investigation, why is he quiet. Why doesn't he say he will make sure this issue is investigated and the people who are responsible are put behind bars. This is raising very serious questions about the Indian Prime Minister just before the leaders of G20 are coming here," Gandhi said, noting world leaders are going to ask the question about this special company owned by a gentleman close to the PM.
"Why is it that in an economy like India, this gentleman is being given a free ride? They are going to ask this question and I think it is very important that this matter is made clear before they arrive," Gandhi asserted.
Asked about any differences within the opposition alliance over the issue, he replied in the negative.
"I don't think there is any difference in opinion. We are very clear -- a JPC should be called and this matter needs to be investigated. This is a matter of India's global reputation and should be investigated," said the MP from Wayanad in Kerala.
"The Prime Minister should come clean. The Prime Minister should say -- yes, I announce a JPC. I announce an investigation into Mr Adani, I announce an investigation into this (two foreign nationals) Chang Chung-Ling and also into this Nasir Ali Shaban Ahli. So, this is the duty of the PM," he said.
Gandhi noted the claims made in the report published by the financial dailies of $1 billion being pumped into Adani group companies' shares to inflate their prices are of grave concern and must be investigated.
"These are newspapers that affect investment in India. They affect the perception of our country. There are a few questions that these newspapers are asking," he said.
"The first question arises: whose money is that? Is this Adani ji's money or someone else's money? The second question is that the mastermind behind this is a gentleman called Vinod Adani, he is the brother of Gautam Adani. There are two other people who are involved in this round tripping of money, one is a gentleman called Nasir Ali Shaban Ahli and another is a Chinese gentleman called Chang Chung Ling," the Congress leader claimed.
He said facts about the two foreign nationals must come out.
"Why are these foreign nationals being allowed to play with the valuation of one of the companies that controls almost all of Indian infrastructure? Who are these people and why are they allowed to do this and what is the role of Mr Adani in that," he asked.
The former Congress chief said it very interesting to note that there was an investigation after evidence was given and stock market regulator SEBI gave a clean chit to Adani.
"It is very interesting to note the very gentleman who gave a clean chit to Mr Adani is today a director in Adani-owned channel NDTV. So it is very clear that there is something very wrong here," he noted.
Asked about the role of SEBI and its investigation, Gandhi said, "What is amazing to me is that the gentleman who has done the investigation is today an employee of Mr Adani. What does that tell you about the nature of the investigation? It is pretty clear no investigation took place and the only reason that no investigation took place is because the PM did not want any investigation to take place. Mr Adani cannot stop an investigation, the Prime Minister can."
Asked whether partners of the opposition bloc are together on the issue and will support him in raising it, he said, "With regards to the INDIA alliance, this is a national issue. This is not an issue of any one party. This is an issue that affects India's reputation, especially because there is G20 (summit) taking place and India's reputation and the Prime Minister's reputation is on the line."
The Congress MP said G20 guests coming to India and right in front of them, two of the biggest financial dailies in the world have said the Prime Minister has ties with Adani.
Gandhi said the issue is that today there is no level-playing field and the billionaire businessman can buy any asset in India -- be it Dharavi (a slum colony in the metropolis whose redevelopment is to be done by an Adani group firm), the Mumbai airport, cement company or defence firm.
"The question is of the level-playing field. Why is the PM protecting one person in this way and that one person is buying all the assets of the country and clearly that person has done wrong," he said.
—PTI

 Congress leader Rahul Gandhi on Thursday asked Prime Minister Narendra Modi to come clean on fresh allegations

Rahul seeks JPC probe into Adani family investing in own shares

Bageshwar: Uttarakhand Chief Minister Pushkar Singh Dhami on Sunday interacted with the public in the Garur village of Uttarakhand's Bageshwar district.  According to official sources, CM Dhami lent a patient ear to the villagers as they opened up on their issues. He also informed the locals of what his government was doing for their betterment. The bypoll in Bageshwar was necessitated after the Assembly segment fell vacant following the death of sitting MLA Chandan Ram Das, who was also the minister for Transport and Social Welfare in the Dhami government. Das passed away on April 23 after a sudden cardiac arrest. He represented the Bageshwar constituency for four consecutive terms since 2007. Upon his demise, the state government declared three days of official mourning. The chief minister, according to sources, is also likely to expand his council of ministers after the bye-election. The Uttarakhand CM is on a tour of the Bageshwar district.  Earlier, on Saturday, he held a roadshow for Parvati Das, the widow of the departed MLA and the BJP's candidate for the bypoll, in Bageshwar’s Garur.  Addressing the roadshow, the CM said, "I have no doubt that we will win with more votes than we did last time.” “This election, however, is being held under difficult circumstances as Chandan Ram Das is no longer with us. Whenever someone leaves us, we all come together, setting aside our differences. I would urge the people of Bageshwar to not only commiserate with his widow but also give her their blessings," the CM said. —ANI

Uttarakhand Chief Minister Pushkar Singh Dhami on Sunday interacted with the public in the Garur village of Uttarakhand's Bageshwar district

The Hawk

Tag : JPC

PM's "drumbeaters" adjourned Parl to prevent JPC demand on Adani issue: Cong

Nidhi Khurana

Tag : JPC

PM's "drumbeaters" adjourned Parl to prevent JPC demand on Adani issue: Cong

Nidhi Khurana

More about JPC