India’s government quietly organized a $3.9 billion plan to channel public money into Gautam Adani’s business empire after U.S. prosecutors charged the billionaire with bribery and fraud, according to internal documents obtained by The Washington Post.
The plan, drafted in May by officials from the Department of Financial Services, Life Insurance Corporation of India (LIC), and government think tank NITI Aayog, was approved by the Finance Ministry. It directed LIC, the state insurer serving millions of low-income citizens, to invest $3.4 billion in Adani Group bonds and another $507 million to increase its equity stakes in subsidiaries.
The move came as Adani’s port unit faced a $585 million refinancing deadline that LIC fully funded, drawing accusations of misuse of public funds. Officials described the effort as “signaling confidence in Adani Group” amid rising debt and growing international hesitation to lend.
Adani, India’s second-richest man with a net worth near $90 billion, has denied wrongdoing, saying the charges, which allege $250 million in bribes for energy contracts, concern individuals, not his companies. The case remains active in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of New York.
Critics say the LIC deal exposes deep political favoritism. “This government supports Adani and will not allow any harm to come to it,” said Mumbai finance analyst Hemindra Hazari. Tim Buckley of Climate Energy Finance called the affair proof that “crony capitalism is alive and kicking.”
Adani’s group maintains that its growth “predates Mr. Modi’s national leadership” and that all investments are market-based. Yet the government’s willingness to deploy taxpayer-backed funds to support a politically connected billionaire has intensified questions about state capture and the health of India’s economic governance.