SECI chief terminated after allowing Anil Ambani’s Reliance Power to bid with fake documents: Sources

New Delhi: The Central government’s abrupt termination of RP Gupta, Chairman and Managing Director of the Solar Energy Corporation of India (SECI), stems from serious irregularities involving Anil Ambani-owned Reliance Power, according to multiple sources familiar with the matter.

Gupta, a retired IAS officer from the Gujarat cadre, was removed from his position with immediate effect, as per an official order.

While the government has not publicly cited any reason for the decision, sources within the Ministry of New and Renewable Energy (MNRE) revealed that the dismissal follows allegations of procedural lapses under Gupta’s leadership — specifically, the clearance of Reliance Power’s participation in a major tender using forged documents.

Last October, reports surfaced that Reliance Power submitted bank guarantees citing the State Bank of India (SBI) as a guarantor in a SECI tender. However, SBI later denied issuing such guarantees and flagged the email ID used by Reliance Power as fake.

Despite these red flags, the company was initially allowed to participate in the bidding process, raising serious questions about oversight at SECI.

Following SBI’s denial, SECI was forced to cancel the tender and bar Reliance Power from future bids — a rare and highly public rebuke in the normally tight-lipped world of energy contracting. Insiders now say that Gupta’s role in permitting the company’s bid, despite clear documentation issues, was the tipping point leading to his removal.

Gupta had been at the helm of SECI since June 2023, with his term originally set to end next month. His tenure coincided with a period of mounting criticism over SECI’s handling of renewable energy auctions and project backlogs.

Nearly 40 gigawatts (GW) of green energy projects tendered by the four designated Renewable Energy Implementation Agencies (REIAs), including SECI, have reportedly failed to find buyers, further compounding scrutiny of the agency.

In recent months, SECI also faced pushback over controversies linked to sector majors like JSW Energy and Adani leading to accusations of lack of due diligence in the bidding process.

A senior official at MNRE, speaking on condition of anonymity, said: “The fake guarantee issue was not just an error — it was a complete failure of the checks and balances that should be routine at SECI. The government could not afford to ignore it, especially when it involves a high-profile player like Reliance Power.”

Requests for comment sent to SECI, MNRE, and Reliance Power remained unanswered at the time of publishing.

As the government continues to push its ambitious renewable energy goals, the fallout from Gupta’s termination is expected to reverberate through the sector, with calls for tighter scrutiny and institutional accountability growing louder.

IANS