New Delhi: India’s largest insurer, Life Insurance Corporation (LIC), has vehemently denied allegations levelled by The Washington Post, labelling them as “false, baseless, and far from the truth.”
The American newspaper claimed that Indian officials drafted a proposal in May to funnel approximately $3.9 billion (around ₹33,000 crore) from LIC into debt-laden companies of the Adani Group, amid mounting financial pressures on the conglomerate.
The report, citing internal documents, suggested involvement from the Union Finance Ministry, its Department of Financial Services (DFS), LIC, and NITI Aayog in approving investments in Adani’s bonds and equities. It highlighted a $585 million bond issuance for Adani Ports, allegedly fully subscribed by LIC alone, to signal confidence and attract other investors.
This incident comes against the backdrop of Adani Group’s debt surging 20% year-on-year, coupled with ongoing US probes into bribery and fraud allegations against the group.
LIC, in a strongly-worded statement, asserted that all its investments are made independently after thorough due diligence and board-approved policies, with no external interference from DFS or any other entity. The company emphasised compliance with regulations to protect its 30 crore policyholders, stating that such claims appear intended to tarnish LIC’s reputation and India’s financial sector.
Opposition parties seized on the report to lambast the Modi government. Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge called it “looting the common man’s hard-earned savings,” while general secretary Jairam Ramesh dubbed it a “Modani mega-scam,” demanding probes by a Joint Parliamentary Committee (JPC) and Public Accounts Committee (PAC). TMC MP Mahua Moitra echoed the outrage, questioning the use of taxpayers’ money to bail out Adani.
This incident isn’t the first storm for Gautam Adani, Asia’s second-richest, with a net worth of ₹6.22 lakh crore. Past controversies include Hindenburg’s 2023 accusations of stock manipulation and recent claims of coal import overpricing. Adani has consistently denied wrongdoing, and investigations by SEBI and a Supreme Court panel cleared some charges.