Adani, widely regarded as one of the wealthiest and most powerful men in India, has close ties to Modi’s government

Gautam Adani is widely regarded as one of the most powerful men in India, as well as one of the wealthiest. Born in the western state of Gujarat, one of eight children whose father was a low level textile trader, Adani is seen as a self-made industrialist. At its peak in 2022, Adani’s personal net worth touched $127bn.

His first venture into business was trading in the diamond industry in Mumbai, where he made hist first million rupees. In the 1980s, he returned to Gujarat to help with his brother’s plastic business and gradually widened to importing metals, agricultural materials and textiles.