US Legal Expert Says Dismissal Is the Only Possible Outcome in Adani Case
Jim Walden, a partner at Walden Haran Williams LLP, stated that the US Department of Justice's (DoJ) response defending its decision to seek dismissal of the alleged bribery case against Gautam Adani and others leaves the judge with little option but to rule in favor of the DoJ. Walden said, 'The response of the DOJ was strong. ... Now the judge's responsibility is clear; their only possible decision is dismissal here and that is clearly the finish line here.' He added, 'Dismissal is the only finish line here. The court is of limited jurisdiction, especially with an issue like this. He has some power of oversight, but he cannot veto the prosecutors. So I expect that he's going to dismiss this week.'
DoJ Argues Case Based in India, Lacks US Jurisdiction
The US DoJ in its reply argued that the case was weak due to evidentiary problems and that most of the alleged evidence was based in India, making US prosecution difficult. Prosecutors said forcing them to spell out their reasoning in detail could undermine constitutional authority over prosecutorial decisions. Walden noted, 'The US subjected one of its allies to 2 years of scrutiny, where there were Euro investor losses, and Indian agencies who are fully capable of looking into it in an ethical way, found no misconduct. ... There is a clear case law in the US that American justice should not be pursuing foreign transgressions, real or perceived. For me, this was a jurisdictional theatre rather than a serious criminal case.'
Case Alleged Bribery in Solar Contracts, Misleading US Investors
The case against Gautam Adani and others had alleged a bribery scheme linked to solar power contracts in India, which further allegedly misled US investors. In May this year, the US DoJ moved to dismiss these charges, following which the US Court of the Eastern District of New York sought a reply from the DoJ. With that reply cementing the DoJ's position, legal experts argue that the judge in all likelihood will back the DoJ stand. Walden emphasized, 'One of the things that I think makes American justice extraordinary is the importance that we've always placed on making sure that people who are accused of serious crimes have due process of law. And I'm glad that the defendants in this case got due process of law.'
Expert Hopes Case Serves as Lesson for Future Administrations
Walden expressed hope that this case would serve as a lesson for future US administrations. 'Because somebody had misguided priorities and really didn't carefully look at all of the things that I've focused on before. There were no losses. You know, there was no jurisdiction in the United States. No American citizens hurt. And the Indian authorities are sophisticated and capable and can carry out these investigations on their own. So I hope whether it's a Republican or Democratic administration in the future, if they think about doing something like this, they'll think again,' he said.
