Republican Congressman demands preservation of all Adani prosecution records

Washington: A Republican lawmaker has asked the US Department of Justice to preserve all records in connection with the "selective prosecution" of billionaire industrialist Gautam Adani and his group of companies by the Biden administration.

The demand comes less than a week before the Donald Trump administration takes office.

Rep Lance Gooden, a member of the House Judiciary Committee, in a letter on Tuesday to Attorney General Merrick Garland, demanded that the department preserve and produce all records and documents leading up to its decision to go after the Adani Group.

In another letter to Garland on January 7, Gooden had raised serious concerns over the department's recent indictment of the group.

The indictment alleged acts conducted entirely within India, involving Indian citizens and officials, with no apparent injury to US interests, he had noted.

"The allegations in the Adani case, even if proven true, would still fail to make us the appropriate and final arbiter on the issue. These 'bribes' were allegedly paid to Indian state government officials, in India, by Indian executives of an Indian company, with no concrete involvement of or injury to any American party," Gooden had said.

"Conversely, Smartmatic, an American company responsible for conducting our elections, had executives who allegedly laundered money and paid bribes to foreign governments, according to the Department of Justice's indictment earlier. However, despite numerous attempts by my colleagues and I to have our concerns addressed before the elections, we were never briefed by your department," he had argued.

Alleging that the department had been highly selective against Adani and his companies, the Republican lawmaker posed several new questions to Garland.

"Why has the Department of Justice not indicted a single American if the case involves a significant nexus with the US? Were there no Americans involved in this alleged scheme? Why has the Department of Justice pursued this case against Gautam Adani when the alleged criminal act, and the parties allegedly involved are in India? Do you seek to enforce justice in India?" he asked.

"Will the Department of Justice seek an extradition of the Indian executives involved in this case? What is the Department of Justice's contingency plan if India refuses to comply with an extradition request and claim sole authority over this case? Is the Department of Justice or the Biden administration willing to escalate this case into an international incident between the US and an ally like India?" he further asked Garland.

Gooden said the questions were also to remind him of the probable consequences of the administration's actions.

India is one of the few reliable partners the US has in the Asia-Pacific region, alongside being one of the fastest-growing and largest economies, he said.

"Such reckless acts of pursuit against its top industrialists could start a harmful narrative against India's growth. Not respecting India's authority over this matter could strain and even permanently damage our international relations with a strategically important and key economic and political ally," he added.

"At this juncture, letting the Indian authorities investigate, determine any injury, and adjudicate on the matter instead of jumping to premature conclusions would be the best and only appropriate course of action. It would also be wise to pursue cases where the department is certain we have appropriate and conclusive jurisdiction, aside from a serious shot at winning," Gooden said in the letter.

The Republican lawmaker asserted that targeting entities that invested tens of billions of dollars and created tens of thousands of jobs for Americans only harmed the US in the long run.

"When we forego real threats from violent crime, economic espionage, and CCP (Communist Party of China) influence and go after those who contribute to our economic growth, it discourages valuable new investors hopeful of investing in our country," Gooden said.

"An unwelcome and politically charged atmosphere for investors will only stall efforts to revitalise America's industrial base and economic growth, directly undermine President Trump's commitment to revive the economy with increased investments. Given the timing of these decisions coincides with the end of the Biden administration, concerns arise that the only true goal here is disruption for President Trump," he added.

Instead of expending valuable taxpayer resources on opening lengthy and "perhaps politically-motivated" pursuits in foreign countries, the department should co-operate with the incoming administration on better serving the American people, Gooden said.

"As a cog in the outgoing administration, it is your duty to the public in being mindful of not creating further complications that could compromise America's geopolitical eminence," he said in the letter to Garland.

"Please also report if there has been any communication or negotiation regarding the Adani case between the Department of Justice (including any of its agents, subsidiaries, instrumentalities, or authorised representatives) and any third-party or agent representing any third party that works closely, for, or in conjunction with any entity partly owned or controlled by George Soros," Gooden said.