Coalgate: Court summons ex-Coal Secy HC Gupta, others as accused

New Delhi: A special court today rejected the closure report of CBI and summoned as accused former Coal Secretary H C Gupta, two government servants, MP-based Kamal Sponge Steel and Power Ltd and its officials in a coal blocks allocation scam case.

Special CBI Judge Bharat Parashar took cognisance of the offences of criminal conspiracy, cheating, criminal breach of trust by public servant under the IPC and under the provisions of the Prevention of Corruption Act.

“I am taking cognisance for the offences under sections 120B, 420 and 409 of the IPC and also under sections 13(1)(d) and 13(2) of the Prevention of Corruption Act. I am summoning the accused,” the judge said, adding that a separate order will be followed.

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The court issued summons to Gupta, two other serving government officials, Kamal Sponge Steel and Power Ltd, its managing director Pavan Ahluwalia and senior official AmitGoyal and directed them to appear before it on October 31.

The court directed the investigating officer to get the summons served to all the accused and also asked him to complete the documents to be given to the accused before the next date of hearing (October 31).

The court passed the order while rejecting the closure report filed by CBI in the case in which Kamal Sponge Steel and Power Ltd, its directors, Pavan, Kamaljeet Ahluwalia,

Prashant Ahluwalia, Amit and some unknown government servants were named as accused for allegedly misrepresenting facts,including inflated net worth, to acquire coal blocks.

In the last hearing, the CBI had told the court that the 36th screening committee, which had recommended coal block allocation to the Madhya Pradesh-based company, was not awarethat the firm had allegedly misrepresented facts for acquiring the block.

The agency had told the court that during probe it was detected that the firm had misrepresented facts and disclosed its wrong net worth before the screening committee, set up for recommending allocation of coal blocks.

CBI, in its closure report, had said, they have not found sufficient evidence against the firm, which was allocated coal block in Madhya Pradesh, and its directors to proceed with the case.

The court had earlier raised questions over CBI filing closure report against the firm’s chartered accountant Amit Goyal as he was the one who had appeared before the screeningcommittee, which dealt with its application seeking allocation of coal blocks, on behalf of the company.

It had asked CBI to clarify as to what evidence “it could not collect” during the probe to substantiate its findings recorded in the FIR in the case.

The agency in its closure report had said that the acts of Coal Ministry officials in not checking the applications with regard to their eligibility and completeness were notfound to be pursuant to “criminal conspiracy”.

CBI had earlier claimed that officials of the firm had furnished unaudited balance sheet and had allegedly inflated its capacity to produce sponge iron by 25 per cent.

PTI