Allegations of Adani paying bribe to Odisha govt officials ‘false’: former Minister

BHUBANESWAR: Former Odisha Energy Minister Pratap Deb has refuted the allegations that state government officials took bribes from the Adani Group for supply of renewable energy to the state from the central pool and described them as “false and not based on fact.” Deb said on Friday that the types of allegations made in the name of Odisha are baseless and not based on facts.

The Government of Odisha has nothing to do with the agreement as whatever agreement was done that remained confined among Gridco, the distribution company and the SECI (Solar Energy Corporation of India Limited), a central PSU, Deb said. The state government has no role in all these matters though the administration was informed regarding the PSA, he said. He claimed that there is a difference between Odisha and other states.

“We in Odisha have privatised the power distribution while other states are doing the job directly. Here Tata Power is doing the distribution part of the electricity supply”, he said, adding that the agreement may involve Adani, SECI, Gridco and the distribution company. “All the agreements on power get the approval of the OERC (Odisha Electricity Regulatory Commission), an autonomous body. The Gridco is also semi-autonomous. Therefore, the state government has no direct role in the agreements. Neither the Energy department minister nor the secretary are involved in all such agreements”, Deb said.

Notably, Adani and seven others, including his nephew Sagar Adani, have been charged by the US Department of Justice with paying bribes to unidentified government officials of several states including Odisha to buy expensive solar power, potentially earning more than USD 2 billion in profit over 20 years. Adani Group, however, denied the charges saying the allegations by US prosecutors are “baseless.”