Youth Cong demands Adani's arrest

New Delhi : The Indian Youth Congress on Monday staged a protest at the Jantar Mantar here demanding the arrest of billionaire industrialist Gautam Adani over allegations that the Adani Group paid USD 250 million in bribe to government officials for favourable solar power contracts in four Indian states.

Led by Indian Youth Congress (IYC) President Uday Bhanu Chib, several protesters, including those coming from other states, raised slogans against Adani holding placards.

Demanding a Joint Parliamentary Committee (JPC) probe against Adani for allegedly acquiring properties in India using corrupt means, Chib called for the industrialist's arrest at the earliest.

The IYC leader also said Prime Minister Narendra Modi should focus on giving jobs to the youth instead of helping his 'industrialist friends' make profits.

The police later detained some of the protesters, including Chib, when they tried to march towards Parliament.

The protest also affected traffic movement in the area, causing inconvenience to the commuters. Ports-to-energy conglomerate Adani Group has been hit by an indictment in a US court against its Chairman Gautam Adani and two other executives for allegedly paying USD 265 million (about Rs 2,200 crore) bribe to Indian officials to secure solar power contracts.

The Adani Group has denied the charge, saying the allegations levelled by the US prosecutors are baseless and that the conglomerate is compliant with all laws.