US SEC seeks to bypass Indian government to serve Gautam Adani legal summons
Guwahati: After India questioned its authority to issue summonses, the US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has turned to a federal court to bypass diplomatic channels and deliver legal documents directly to Gautam Adani and his nephew Sagar Adani through their US-based attorneys and email.
In a motion filed on Wednesday (January 21) before the US District Court for the Eastern District of New York, the SEC stated it no longer expects service to be completed under the Hague Convention, the international treaty it had been relying on since February 2025.
The SEC referenced its own Rule 5(b), which outlines how the agency initiates enforcement actions or involves the Department of Justice. India’s Ministry of Law and Justice had reviewed the documents and claimed they did not meet these criteria, but the SEC dismissed this objection as “baseless.”
“This objection does not affect the SEC’s power to enforce the law or the procedures for serving documents under the Hague Convention,” the agency said, adding that India seemed to question its authority to seek service through the treaty.
This is the second time India’s ministry has refused to serve the documents. The first rejection, in April 2025, cited missing seals and signatures, which the SEC said were unnecessary under international rules.
The SEC is now asking permission under Rule 4(f)(3) of the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure to serve the summonses and complaint through the Adanis’ US lawyers and business email addresses. The agency said this method would ensure “effective notice” to the defendants, who are aware of the case and actively responding.
Why the SEC Filed the Case
The SEC, on November 20, 2024, filed a civil complaint against Gautam Adani, chairman of Adani Green Energy Ltd, and Sagar Adani, the company’s executive director, accusing them of a bribery scheme involving payments or promises worth hundreds of millions of dollars to Indian government officials.
The charges relate to a September 2021 bond offering by Adani Green, which raised over $175 million from US investors. According to the SEC, the offering documents contained misleading statements about the company’s anti-bribery programs.
A criminal case was filed the same day by the US Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of New York, accusing the Adanis and others of securities fraud and wire fraud conspiracies. The Adani Group called the allegations “baseless” and said it would pursue all legal remedies.
Attempts to Serve Documents via India Fell Through
The SEC first tried to serve the summonses through India’s Ministry of Law and Justice on February 17, 2025, under the Hague Convention, which allows international service of legal documents. The ministry forwarded the requests to the District and Sessions Court in Ahmedabad but returned them unexecuted in April, citing missing seals.
The SEC resubmitted the requests in May 2025, pointing out that the Hague Convention does not require seals and giving examples of previous successful service requests sent to India without them. However, the ministry did not respond to follow-up inquiries in April and September 2025.
SEC Now Wants to Serve via Lawyers and Email
In its motion, the SEC asked Judge Nicholas G. Garaufis to allow service through the Adanis’ US attorneys, Hecker Fink LLP for Sagar Adani and Kirkland & Ellis LLP and Quinn Emanuel Urquhart & Sullivan LLP for Gautam Adani, as well as by email to their corporate addresses.
The agency noted that both defendants are already aware of the lawsuit, based on public statements, regulatory filings, and retention of US counsel. Documents obtained during the SEC’s investigation show that Gautam and Sagar Adani regularly use their corporate emails for business, including communications about the bond offering.
“Service on Defendants’ established counsel is therefore ‘virtually guaranteed to provide notice to defendants’,” the SEC argued in its memorandum, noting that the Adanis are actively managing their response to the litigation.