US President Donald Trump has signed an executive order directing the Department of Justice (DoJ) to pause enforcement of the 1977 Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (FCPA), a law that prohibits American companies and foreign firms from bribing foreign officials to secure or retain business. As per reports, this move is aimed at enhancing the competitiveness of US businesses on the global stage.
The executive order instructs US Attorney General Pam Bondi to halt FCPA-related prosecutions and to review existing guidelines and past actions under the law. The administration argues that stringent enforcement of the FCPA has placed American companies at a disadvantage compared to international competitors who may engage in such practices.
This development has direct implications for ongoing investigations, notably the case involving Indian billionaire Gautam Adani and his nephew Sagar Adani. Last year, under the Biden administration, the DoJ charged the Adani Group with allegedly orchestrating a scheme to pay over $250 million in bribes to Indian officials in exchange for favourable terms in solar power contracts. These allegations were pursued under the FCPA, citing connections to American investors and markets.
Will Trump’s decision bring relief to Adani
The pause and the review is being seen as a relief to the Adani Group but it remains to be seen what stand the DoJ takes after the six month review period. The order that Trump signed asked “the Attorney General to review guidelines and policies governing investigations and enforcement actions under the FCPA” in 180 days. “During the review period, the Attorney General shall cease initiation of any new FCPA investigations or enforcement actions, unless the Attorney General determines that an individual exception should be made,” it said.
Also it sought “review in detail all existing FCPA investigations or enforcement actions and take appropriate action with respect to such matters to restore proper bounds on FCPA enforcement and preserve Presidential foreign policy prerogatives”. FCPA investigations and enforcement actions initiated or continued after the revised guidelines or policies are issued “shall be governed by such guidelines or policies; and must be specifically authorized by the Attorney General”. After the revised guidelines or policies are issued, the Attorney General shall determine whether additional actions, including remedial measures with respect to inappropriate past FCPA investigations and enforcement actions, are warranted and shall take any such appropriate actions or, if Presidential action is required, recommend such actions to the President, it added.
US lawmakers question DoJ’s actions
Last year, the DoJ had charged a former executive at renewable energy firm Azure, which was at the heart of a case accusing Adani of perpetrating a bribery scheme. The DoJ also brought a criminal indictment. While Adani Group had called the charges “baseless”, Azure said the former employees referenced in the charges had been “separated” from it for more than a year.
Separately, half a dozen US Congressmen have written to the new Attorney General against “questionable” decisions made by the US Department of Justice (DoJ) such as the indictment against the Adani Group in an alleged bribery scam, which “jeopardises the relationship with close ally India”. Lance Gooden, Pat Fallon, Mike Haridopolos, Brandon Gill, William R Timmmons and Brian Babin on February 10 wrote to Pamela Bondi drawing “attention to some questionable decisions made by the DOJ under the Biden administration”.
“Some of these decisions involved selectively pursuing and abandoning cases, often acting against America’s interests at home and abroad, jeopardizing relationships with close allies like India,” the Congressmen said in the joint letter. India, they said, has been an important ally of the United States for decades. This relationship has flourished beyond politics, trade, and economics by evolving into a continuous socio-cultural exchange between the world’s two largest democracies.
(With PTI inputs)
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