Nationalist Congress Party chief Sharad Pawar on Friday said that American firm Hindenburg Research’s critical report on the Adani Group seems to be a targeted attack and distanced himself from his ally Congress’ demand for a parliamentary investigation into the allegations made by the company.
Pawar made the comments during an interview with NDTV, a news channel in which the conglomerate’s head Gautam Adani is the biggest shareholder.
On January 24, Hindenburg Research alleged that the Adani Group is pulling off the “largest con in corporate history”. Its report claimed that the Indian conglomerate was involved in stock manipulation, accounting fraud and money laundering.
The Adani Group has rejected the allegations and denied any wrongdoing. But the report triggered a rout in stocks of the conglomerate’s seven listed companies, which collectively lost more than $100 billion in market valuation.
“Such statements [on the Adani Group] were given by other individuals too earlier and there was a ruckus in Parliament for a few days but this time out of proportion importance was given to the issue,” Pawar told NDTV on Friday. “We had never heard of these people [Hindenburg] who gave the statement...when they raise issues that cause a ruckus across the country, the cost is borne by the country’s economy, we cannot disregard these things. An individual industrial group of the country was targeted, that is what it seems.”
On why the Congress was seeking a Joint Parliamentary Committee inquiry, Pawar said he could not say.
“But I know that a committee appointed by judges of the Supreme Court was very important,” he told NDTV. “Maybe the reasoning could have been that once a JPC starts, its proceedings are reported in the media on a daily basis. Perhaps someone would have wanted the issue to fester for two-four months, but the truth would never have come out.”
The veteran politician said there is no significance of parliamentary inquiry when the Supreme Court has set up an independent panel to investigate the allegations against the Adani Group.
“If a parliamentary committee is appointed, then the monitoring is with the ruling party,” he explained. “The demand was against the ruling party, and if the committee appointed for an inquiry has a ruling party majority, then how will the truth come out is a valid concern.”
The 82-year-old also told NDTV that criticising Gautam Adani and Mukesh Ambani while targeting the Modi government is not right.
“Today, Ambani has contributed in the petrochemical sector, does the country not need it?” he asked. “In the field of electricity, Adani has contributed. Does the country not need electricity? These are people who take up such responsibility and work for the name of the country.”
Reacting to Pawar’s comments, the Congress said the Nationalist Congress Party may have its view but 19 Opposition parties are convinced that the charges against the Adani Group are “real and very serious”.
Congress General Secretary Jairam Ramesh said that the Opposition, including the Nationalist Congress Party, is united in saving the Indian Constitution and democracy.
Shiv Sena (Uddhav Balasaheb Thackeray) leader Sanjay Raut said that Pawar’s remarks on the Adani Group controversy will not harm the Opposition unity either in Maharashtra or across the country, reported PTI.
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