Amidst reports of uproar over the Union ministry of energy from Kenya proposing a private investment partnership deal with Adani Energy Solutions Ltd, a fake letter has gone viral on social media claiming bribes were paid by the Adani group to individuals and government shareholders also received benefits from the deal. The Adani group denied issuing any such letter and termed the letter circulating on social media as false narratives.

Here is what the letter claims: "Furthermore, we would like to caution those planning to participate in these demonstrations that such actions could have serious consequences. If these threats persist, we will have no choice but to reveal the names of government shareholders who have benefitted from our investments. Additionally, we will also publish the names of individuals who have received substantial bribes from our company."
However, in a statement, a spokesperson of the Adani group says, "We categorically state that neither the Adani group nor any of its companies or subsidiaries have issued any press releases related to Kenya. We strongly condemn this deceitful act and urge everyone to disregard these fake fraudulent releases completely. We will take legal action against anyone involved in spreading false narratives."
A few things in the letter raise red flags for a fake or bogus letter. Two red flags anyone can spot are how the date is written and the difference in paragraph space. In any official communication, the date is written like September 16, 2024 or 16 September 2024. However, neither of the date formats use two commas, like what can be seen in this letter.
Secondly, while sufficient space exists between the first and second para, there is no space between the above-quoted para and the next para. All official communications are drafted professionally and are very particular about paragraph spacing. The letter lacks this.
Coming back to Kenya, according to
a report from Kenyans, the ministry of energy is set to hold a stakeholders' public participation conference to get views of Kenyans on the proposed private investment partnership deal with Adani Energy despite the uproar it has elicited from Kenyans.
The government is planning to award Adani Energy Solutions permission to transmit Kenya's electricity. "Should the deal sail through, the multinational company will take over from Kenya's electricity transmission company and be in charge of the electricity transmission from the power generators, a move that has been opposed by Kenyans," the report says.
Last week, Kenya's high court temporarily blocked a proposed deal for India's Adani group to lease the country's main airport for 30 years in exchange for expanding it,
a report from Reuters says quoting court documents.
In a joint application, the Law Society of Kenya (LSK), the country's main bar association, and the Kenya Human Rights Commission (KHRC) told the court that the country could independently raise the US$1.85bn (billion) required to upgrade the airport in the capital Nairobi.
"LSK and KHRC said the alleged 30-year lease of Jomo Kenyatta International Airport (JKIA), East Africa's largest aviation hub, was unaffordable, threatened job losses, was a fiscal risk and did not offer taxpayers value for money, court documents published by the KHRC on their website showed," the report says.