The Indian National Congress on Tuesday cautioned that protests against Adani Group ‘taking over’ operations of Kenya’s Nairobi airport could turn public sentiment in the African nation against India, after members of Kenya Aviation Workers Union had called for protests over plans by the Kenyan government to strike an investment deal with India’s Adani Group to expand and operate Nairobi’s Jomo Kenyatta International Airport, according to AFP and Scroll.in reports.
About 10,000 members of the union had initially planned to walk out August 19, but the strike was pushed back until September 2 to allow for negotiations and now the strike has been delayed again, reported AFP.
Scroll.in reported that congress leader Jairam Ramesh on Tuesday said that there had been widespread protests by the workers’ union in Kenya against Gautam Adani-led conglomerate’s proposed takeover of the airport in the capital Nairobi.
Ramesh said in a social media that this was a matter of grave concern for India, as prime minister Narendra Modi’s ‘friendship with (Adani Group chairperson Gautam Adani) is now globally well-known.’
‘The protests can therefore easily convert into anger against India and the Indian government,’ he added.
There are nearly 80,000 persons of Indian origin living in Kenya, along with 20,000 Indian citizens, according to the Indian High Commission in Nairobi.
Ramesh further said that there had been ‘similar controversies around Adani projects’ in recent years in Bangladesh and Sri Lanka that have ‘undermined our (India’s) national interest and contributed to bad outcomes’ for the country.
The Congress communications in-charge claimed that the Bangladesh government’s contract to purchase electricity from Adani Power’s coal plant in Jharkhand ‘became a flashpoint’ in the agitation that led to the ouster of Sheikh Hasina in August, according to Scroll.in.
Scroll.in added that Adani Power’s power exports to Bangladesh have long been at the centre of controversy, with experts contending that it entails Dhaka buying power at exorbitantly high prices. Opposition parties in Bangladesh have criticised the arrangement, calling it an ‘extremely uneven deal signed with an ulterior motive’.
The Adani Group firm sells power to Bangladesh under an agreement signed in 2017 when the Hasina-led Awami League government was in power in Dhaka. The deal between Adani Group and Dhaka was signed in August 2015, shortly after prime minister Narendra Modi visited Bangladesh.
Opposition parties in India have questioned whether Modi was directly involved in the deal between Adani Group and the Hasina government.
Last year, however, the Bangladesh Power Development Board wrote to the company seeking that the agreement be revised.
In August, days after the Hasina government collapsed, the Indian government amended its guidelines on power exports to allow Adani Power to sell electricity contracted to Bangladesh within India in certain situations.
The move is expected to help safeguard Adani Power against possible disruptions caused by the political crisis in the neighbouring country.
According to Scroll.in, the Congress leader said that Adani’s renewable energy projects in Sri Lanka’s Mannar district were also embroiled in a controversy ‘and were a part’ of the widespread protests against the Sri Lankan government in 2022.
In June 2022, a top Sri Lankan official had alleged that Modi had ‘pressured’ Gotabaya Rajapaksa, the island nation’s president at the time, to award a power project to the Adani Group. The official later withdrew his statement and the Sri Lankan authorities denied the allegation.
AFP reported that under the proposal, Adani would invest $1.85 billion to expand the airport in exchange for operating it for 30 years, according to documents seen by AFP.
Adani would add a second runway and upgrade the passenger terminal, according to airport operator Kenya Airport Authority.
Kenya’s government has defended the deal as a necessary measure to refurbish JKIA — one of Africa’s busiest hubs — which is often hit by power outages and leaking roofs.
The KAA said last month that the deal would be ‘subjected to technical, financial and legal reviews alongside requisite due processes’.
According to the KAA, 8.8 million passengers and 3,80,000 tonnes of cargo passed through the airport in the 2022-23 financial year. It contributes just over five per cent of Kenya’s gross domestic product, reported AFP.
