Indian congress jabs at Adani's ‘morally correct’ remark

The Congress on Thursday took a dig at beleaguered billionaire Gautam Adani over his explanation for pulling a record domestic equity offering, saying Adani speaking of being "morally correct" is like his "Prime Mentor" – a veiled reference to Prime Minister Narendra Modi who is widely perceived as being close to the Indian tycoon – preaching humility, sobriety and large-heartedness.

As the stock rout in Adani's group of companies intensified following a sharp selloff, Adani Enterprises said it has decided to withdraw its fully subscribed ₹20,000-crore follow-on public offer (FPO) to insulate investors from potential losses.

Gautam Adani, chairman, Adani Enterprises Ltd, said the board "felt that going ahead with the issue would not be morally correct."

"The interest of the investors is paramount and hence to insulate them from any potential financial losses, the Board has decided not to go ahead with the FPO," he added.

The late-night statement followed an address to investors on Thursday morning in which Adani reiterated his reasons to call off the FPO while stressing that the fundamentals of his company are "very strong" and its balance sheet is healthy.

"Our EBITDA levels and cash flows have been very strong and we have an impeccable track record of fulfilling our debt obligations. We will continue to focus on long-term value creation and growth will be managed by internal accruals," he said.

Reacting to Adani's remarks, Jairam Ramesh, Congress general secretary in charge of communications, said "Adani speaking of being morally correct is like his Prime Mentor preaching virtues of humility, sobriety and large-heartedness."

"This is ENTIRE political science."

The Congress has been alleging that Prime Minister Modi and his government have been favouring the Adani group in various sectors.

Earlier today, Trinamool Congress MP Mahua Moitra hit out at Adani for calling off its FPO amid reports that claimed Adani Group likely bought into its own $2.5 billion share sale.

"Too expensive to buy your own shares at ₹3200 when you can buy them from market at ₹2000!" she tweeted.

"'Joke is on us'. Keep fooling @SEBI_India & don't disclose source of money. Rampant market manipulation doesn't make one "stand by its investors".

Disclaimer: The headline has been modified.