“There are a number of things he is getting away with and nobody is questioning him. It may become an embarrassment for the government as he portrays himself close to it.”Responding to Swamy’s allegations, Adani group said on Wednesday they have created world-class assets and that their dependence on PSUs for long-term borrowings is less than 50%. Credit: PTINew Delhi: In a surprise move, BJP leader and Rajya Sabha MP Subramanian Swamy has attacked business tycoon Gautam Adani, calling for him to be made accountable for suspected bad loans of the Adani group.Gautam Adani is chairman of the debt-ridden Adani group, which has business interests ranging from ports to power to coal trading.“The biggest NPA trapeze artiste in PSUs is Gautam Adani. It is time he is made accountable or PIL (public interest litigation) is inevitable,” Subramanian Swamy said in a tweet.“There are a number of things he is getting away with and nobody is questioning him. It may become an embarrassment for the government as he portrays himself close to it,” Swamy added.The biggest NPA trapeze artiste in PSUs is Gautam Adani. It is time he is made accountable or a PIL is inevitable— Subramanian Swamy (@Swamy39) March 6, 2018Speaking to ANI, Swamy said, “Information came to me that he (Gautam Adani) may be having as much as Rs 72,000 (crore) in non-performing assets (NPAs). This will be clear only after investigation. That’s why I raised this question.”According to the Harun Global Rich List 2018 published recently, the 55-year-old business tycoon’s wealth doubled in the last year to $14 billion (over Rs 91,000 crore).Adani’s wealth stood at $1.9 billion when Narendra Modi was nominated BJP’s prime ministerial candidate in September 2013. Adani’s stock more than tripled in value by the time Modi became prime minister in 2014.The last three years had seen Adani add only $1 billion in value to that fortune, but 2017-2018 has, if we are to go by the Harun Rich List, fuelled another surge.Regular servicing, says AdaniResponding to Swamy’s allegations, Adani group said on Wednesday they have created world-class assets and that their dependence on PSUs for long-term borrowings is less than 50%.“Given our rating track record, different sources of debt are available to the group, ranging from international bonds, external commercial borrowing (ECB) loans, domestic bonds, loans from private sector as well as public sector banks in India,” the group said in a statement.“Singular critical test for debt is its regular servicing-something which Adani group has implemented diligently. One must also look at financial metrics of group. Group’s dependence on PSU bank for long-term borrowings is less than 50% at about Rs 34,000 crore and is regularly serviced,” the statement added.
