Washington: US President Donald Trump signed an executive order directing the Department of Justice (DoJ) to pause enforcing a nearly half-century-old law that was used to launch a bribery investigation against the Adani Group.
Trump signed an order to pause enforcing of the 1977 Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (FCPA) that prohibits American companies and foreign firms from bribing officials of foreign governments to obtain or retain business.
The President directed US Attorney General Pam Bondi to pause enforcement of FCPA, which was at the heart of some of the indictment against Indian billionaire and Adani Group head Gautam Adani and his nephew Sagar.
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 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.