
In an unprecedented and secretive move, Israel’s intelligence agency, Mossad, allegedly hacked into the home servers of Indian Overseas Congress chairman Sam Pitroda, who is a close aide of Congress MP Rahul Gandhi. The operation was aimed at uncovering any links between the Indian opposition and US-based short-seller Hindenburg Research, according to a report by Sputnik India.
Mossad jumped into action with “Operation Zeppelin” soon after Hindenburg Research on January 24, 2023 released a damning report accusing the Adani Group of orchestrating one of the largest corporate frauds, reported the sources close to the media outlet.
The report led to Adani’s market value drop drastically and triggered a major stock market crash in India.
The Hindenburg Research had come at a time Adani Ports and Special Economic Zone (APSEZ) had finalised a US$ 1.2 billion agreement to acquire majority stakes in the strategically vital Haifa Port in Israel. The deal involving 18 contenders, was seen as extremely vital for the India-Middle East-Europe Economic Corridor (IMEEC).
Hindenburg Research has since shut down its operations.
The sources also revealed that Pitroda’s US-based systems were targetted and encrypted chatrooms and backchannel communication platforms accessed by Mossad that "found links between Rahul Gandhi and the Hindenburg Research team" to undermine Gautam Adani and Prime Minister Narendra Modi.
Hindenburg Research in its report had accused the Gautam Adani Group of inflating its stock prices through complex accounting practices and a network of offshore shell companies.