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Government company Life Insurance Corporation of India (LIC) has been accused of making huge investments in Adani Group. American newspaper Washington Post has made this allegation in its report. The newspaper has claimed in its report that LIC has planned to invest 3.9 billion dollars i.e. approximately Rs 33 thousand crores in Adani Group. This scheme was made in May this year. However, LIC has rejected these claims.

The Washington Post has claimed in its report that there are documents from LIC and the Finance Ministry, which make it clear that LIC had prepared a complete roadmap to invest $3.9 billion in Adani Group.

The newspaper also claimed in its report that pressure on Gautam Adani’s companies had increased due to facing several allegations and investigations. The debt on Adani Group was also increasing. Therefore, the government had planned to invest $3.9 billion in LIC.

After the report came out, politics has also started on this. Congress has demanded an investigation into this matter. Congress says it should be investigated how LIC was ‘forced’ to make such an investment?

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What claims did the Washington Post make?

American newspaper Washington Post has published this report with the title ‘India’s $3.9 billion plan to help Modi’s mogul ally after US charges’. It claims that ‘Internal documents reveal how Indian officials planned to invest billions of dollars in Gautam Adani’s business through LIC.’

The newspaper has claimed in its report that ‘in 2024, America had accused Gautam Adani of bribery and fraud. It is being verified. This increased the problems of Adani Group. The debt on Adani Group also increased but due to being under US investigation, there was no help from the banks.

Citing internal documents, Washington Post has claimed that ‘In May, Indian authorities passed a proposal, under which LIC was planned to invest $3.9 billion in Adani Group.’

It has been claimed that this proposal was passed when Adani Group’s Adani Ports had to repay the loan. Adani Group had issued a bond of $ 585 million to repay the loan. This was a kind of new loan. In May 2025, Adani Group had announced that the entire bond had been purchased by a single investor, LIC.

The Washington Post report claims that ‘documents show that Finance Ministry officials had asked LIC to invest about $3.4 billion in corporate bonds issued by Adani Group. Along with this, advice was also given to increase stake in Adani Group companies by $507 million. It is claimed that Finance Ministry officials had argued that ‘there is not as much benefit in 10-year government bonds as there is in investing in Adani Group.’

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What did LIC say?

Washington Post has claimed in its report that LIC was ‘pressured’ to invest in Adani Group. However, LIC has rejected all these claims and allegations.

LIC has issued a statement saying that ‘The entire decision to invest is taken by the LIC Board. The decision is taken independently only after complete investigation. This means that LIC itself decides where and how much to invest. Government has no role in this.

The statement said, ‘LIC does complete investigation and then makes investments only as per the rules, regulations and guidelines. While doing this, the interests of all stakeholders are kept in mind.

LIC has further said in its statement, ‘LIC is not a small fund, rather it has assets worth Rs 41 lakh crore across the country. This report has been published with the intention of damaging the decision-making process of LIC and tarnishing the reputation and image of the Indian financial sector. LIC says that it has invested not only in Adani Group but in 351 companies.

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Have Adani’s troubles increased?

Washington Post in its report has described Adani Group as being under ‘pressure’. It has been claimed that this company was started in 1991 and soon Narendra Modi’s attention fell on it. It is claimed that during the 2014 Lok Sabha elections, Narendra Modi used to travel for campaigning in the private jet of Adani Group.

The newspaper writes that Adani Group has now become a multi-national company. Adani Group’s ports handle about 27% of the country’s cargo shipments. In 2022, Adani Group also bought its stake in NDTV. In 2022, he was the second richest person in the world but subsequent alleged ‘scams’ shook the company.

Hindenburg report came in 2023, in which allegations of manipulation in Adani Group were made. Last year, the US Justice Department had also alleged that Adani Group had lied to American bankers and investors. By doing this he raised funds worth billions of dollars. The Justice Department had also alleged that Adani Group had paid bribes of $250 million to Indian officials to get solar energy contracts.

After this, Adani’s problems increased further. The debt also increased. Due to being entangled in the American investigation, the banks did not express confidence and refused to give loans.

However, America’s largest funds BlackRock and Apollo, Japan’s largest bank Mizuho, ​​MUFG and Germany’s second largest bank DZ Bank have invested heavily in Adani Group in recent months.

News agency PTI has quoted sources as saying that Adani Group has a total debt of Rs 2.6 lakh crore, but it also has the potential to earn a profit of Rs 90 thousand crore every year. The group has cash worth Rs 60 thousand crores. This means that even if Adani Group does not take up any new projects, it can repay its entire loan in less than three years.

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How much stake does LIC hold in Adani Group?

LIC is not only an insurance company but also an institutional investor. LIC has invested in more than 350 companies of the country.

According to PTI, LIC has a 4% stake in Adani Group companies, which is worth Rs 60 thousand crore. Additionally, LIC holds 6.94% shares in Reliance, worth Rs 1.33 lakh crore.

Apart from these, LIC also holds 15.86% (Rs 82,800 crore) stake in ITC Limited, 4.89% (Rs 64,725 crore) in HDFC Bank and 9.59% (Rs 79,361 crore) in SBI. LIC also has 5.02% stake in TCS, which is worth Rs 5.7 lakh crore.

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Congress raised questions, demanded investigation

Congress has become aggressive after the Washington Post report came out. Congress General Secretary Jairam Ramesh has demanded an investigation into this matter. He alleged that LIC ‘misappropriated’ the money of Rs 30 crore policy holders to benefit Adani Group.

He has demanded an investigation into this matter by the Public Accounts Committee of Parliament. He said that the committee should investigate how LIC was ‘forced’ to invest in Adani Group?

He asked, ‘The question arises, under whose pressure the officials of the Finance Ministry and NITI Aayog decided that their job was to save a private company which is facing financial crisis due to serious criminal allegations?’

In the statement, Jairam Ramesh further said, ‘When charges were framed against Gautam Adami and his 7 associates in America on September 21, 2024, LIC suffered a huge loss of Rs 7,850 crore in just 4 hours of trading. This shows how heavy is the cost of squandering public money on favored corporate houses.

Congress alleged that it was a ‘mega scam’ and a joint committee of Parliament should investigate it.