The U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) moves to permanently dismiss the criminal fraud and bribery case against Indian billionaire Gautam Adani and seven others, telling a federal court the prosecution was legally flawed and should never have been brought. The filing comes after U.S. District Judge Nicholas Garaufis questioned the DOJ’s request for a dismissal with prejudice and asked prosecutors to provide a fuller explanation, criticizing an earlier motion as “terse, bland, and conclusory.”
According to multiple reports, DOJ argues that courts play a limited role when reviewing executive-branch charging decisions under Rule 48(a) of the Federal Rules of Criminal Procedure, which requires judicial permission to dismiss an indictment. The DOJ also contends that forcing prosecutors to publicly justify future dismissals would deter such decisions and risk disclosure of privileged internal deliberations, while also infringing on the executive branch’s constitutional authority over how cases are handled.
Legal experts quoted in some outlets say it would be unusual for a judge to reject a DOJ request to drop an indictment, noting modern precedent for compelling continued prosecution after the executive branch decides to abandon a case is limited. Adani’s side also disputes that an investment plan prompted the DOJ’s action, while a Brooklyn federal prosecutor said he lacks a basis to challenge the DOJ’s move.
