More than a year after the case was first filed, the United States (US) Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has been unable to serve summons to Gautam Adani, his nephew Sagar Adani, and the Adani Group in India. In its latest status report submitted on December 12, the agency informed Judge James R Cho of the Eastern District of New York court that it “understands” that India’s Ministry of Law and Justice (MoLJ) has “not yet effected service” to the Adani Group.
“Because Defendants reside in India, the SEC previously initiated the process for serving them under the Hague Service Convention for Service Abroad of Judicial and Extrajudicial Documents in Civil or Commercial Matters. That process requires assistance from India’s Ministry of Law and Justice, which has yet to serve Defendants,” the SEC said in its status report.
The SEC now has until India’s Republic Day next year to file another status report in the case. This is its fifth status report this year.
On November 20, 2024, US prosecutors had first indicted Adani Group’s founder and chairman, Gautam Adani, Sagar Adani, and others for alleged bribery, securities fraud, wire fraud and related conspiracies. The SEC alleged that the Group paid bribes totalling about Rs 2,029 crore to secure solar power deals with several states in India. The deals were mediated by the Solar Energy Corporation of India (SECI), a Navratna PSU.
The process of serving summons on the Adani Group in the case has been ongoing since then, and the SEC had earlier submitted status reports on April 23, June 27, August 11, and October 13, stating that it was continuing to serve the Adani Group in the case.
“As detailed in its prior status updates, the SEC requested assistance from India’s MoLJ under Article 5(a) of the Hague Service Convention to serve the Summons and Complaint on Defendants. The SEC also sent Notices of Lawsuit and Requests for Waiver of Service of Summons, including copies of the Complaint, directly to Defendants and their counsel. The SEC has been in periodic contact with India’s MOLJ and understands that they have not yet effected service. The SEC’s efforts to serve the Defendants are ongoing, and it will keep the Court informed of its progress,” the SEC informed Judge Cho.
The US indictment came about after it was alleged that the Adani Group did not disclose its “own involvement in a complex and high-value bribery scheme” to US investors.
The SEC had first informed the court in February that it had been in touch with India’s law ministry to serve notices to the Adani Group.
In May, TNM reported that lawyers representing the Adani Group were trying to persuade their US counterparts to drop the case. Back then, the Group’s arguments relied on US President Donald Trump’s suspension of the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (FCPA) in February.
The charges against Adani and other executives, including his 30-year-old nephew Sagar Adani, included violations of the US Securities Act. Adani Green, formed in 2015, was alleged to have “falsely” claimed its compliance with US laws in connection with a USD 750 million bond.
Between December 2019 and July 2020, the SECI awarded tenders to the Adani Group and Azure Power for 12 gigawatts of solar-generated electricity at a price. The PSU, however, was unable to find state power companies willing to pay higher prices.
Court documents say that when the SECI was unwilling to find such companies, Azure and Adani came together to “devise a scheme to offer, authorise, make and promise to make bribe payments to Indian government officials” to get state governments to enter into power contracts with the SECI.
Alleged bribes worth Rs 2,029 crore were offered, including Rs 1,750 crore to officials from Andhra Pradesh and the state’s then Chief Minister Jagan Mohan Reddy. Court documents had also mentioned that Adani Group officials met with government functionaries from Maharashtra, Kerala, Bihar, Chhattisgarh, Tamil Nadu, Odisha, and Jammu and Kashmir to help SECI secure Power Sales Agreements (PSAs) with the states.
The SEC filing on December 12 is below in full:
“Pursuant to the Court’s October 15, 2025 Status Report Order, plaintiff Securities and Exchange Commission (“SEC”) respectfully submits this report regarding its efforts to serve the Summons and Complaint on Defendants Gautam Adani and Sagar Adani (“Defendants”).
Because Defendants reside in India, the SEC previously initiated the process for serving them under the Hague Service Convention for Service Abroad of Judicial and Extrajudicial Documents in Civil or Commercial Matters (“Hague Service Convention”). That process requires assistance from India’s Ministry of Law and Justice (“India’s MoLJ”), which has yet to serve Defendants.
The SEC filed its Complaint on November 20, 2024, alleging that Defendants violated federal securities laws by making false and misleading representations about Adani Green Energy Ltd. (“Adani Green”) in connection with a September 2021 debt offering. (ECF No. 1.)
Because both Defendants are located in India, service is governed by Rule 4(f) of the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure (“FRCP”), which imposes no time limit for service and allows the SEC to serve them by any internationally agreed means reasonably calculated to give notice, such as the Hague Service Convention. (See SEC Ltr. to Hon. N. Garaufis, dated February 18, 2025 (ECF No.8).)
The SEC has filed status updates concerning its ongoing service efforts on April 23, 2025, June 27, 2025, August 11, 2025, and October 13, 2025. (ECF Nos. 9-12.) As detailed in its prior status updates, the SEC requested assistance from India’s MoLJ under Article 5(a) of the Hague Service Convention to serve the Summons and Complaint on Defendants.
The SEC also sent Notices of Lawsuit and Requests for Waiver of Service of Summons, including copies of the Complaint, directly to Defendants and their counsel. The SEC has been in periodic contact with India’s MOLJ and understands that they have not yet effected service. The SEC’s efforts to serve the Defendants are ongoing and it will keep the Court informed of its progress.”