New Delhi, Dec 2: US President Joe Biden’s surprise move to issue a sweeping pardon for eldest son Hunter Biden, convicted for gun crimes and tax violations charges, has sparked off a flurry of reactions and backlash from within the political fraternity, including President-elect Donald Trump, and raised questions about the indictment against the Adani Group.
Biden’s move to pardon his son is seen as a big U-turn from his earlier resolve and has also reignited debate on the ‘impartial’ functioning of the US Department of Justice and whether it remains susceptible to political interference.
Biden justified the move by saying that the case against his son was politically motivated and designed to “break” him and his son Hunter. Notably, in his previous statements, Biden often vowed to uphold the rule of law and not use his Presidential powers to pardon his son. President-elect Trump termed this move as a “miscarriage of justice”’.
Meanwhile, a fierce debate has begun in US power corridors on whether the Department of Justice is “controlled” by political powerhouses. There is a wider feeling that the Adani indictment by the Department of Justice is also politically driven by the outgoing Biden government.
Also, many political and geopolitical experts believe that once Trump takes over, the Indictment against Adani could be reversed as well. Kashyap Patel, lawyer, investigator and a stern critic of the US deep state, has spoken about “partisan” and “motivated” practices and also called for a drastic overhaul of the US law enforcement and Intelligence agencies.
“All people in the Department of Justice are just looking for their next promotion,” said Patel, who has been named as the next FBI Director by Trump. Notably, it was the Department of Justice, along with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), that accused Adani Group Chairman Gautam Adani and other group officials of bribery charges. While US President’s son Hunter Biden was convicted of charges, Gautam Adani, Sagar Adani and senior executive Vneet Jaain were only accused by the DoJ and SEC.
“The defendants are innocent unless and until proven guilty,” said the DoJ in a public statement. The DOJ and the SEC filed an indictment and a civil complaint in the New York District Court against Gautam Adani, Sagar Adani, and Vneet Jaain, key executives of Adani Green Energy Ltd (AGEL). However, the Adani Group had refuted the allegations, terming it ‘baseless’, and said it would seek legal recourse to defend itself.
IANS