Coal news and updates

Amid uproar over missing coal blocks allocation files, the Central Vigilance Commission (CVC) has convened a meeting with Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) director Ranjit Sinha to discuss the issue which has a bearing on the multi-crore scam being probed by it.

“A meeting has been fixed with the CBI director on the matter (of missing coal blocks allocation files) with the CVC,” vigilance commissioner R. Srikumar told PTI on the sidelines of a function. 

Srikumar, who was speaking after the inauguration of Vigilance Study Circle of Delhi NCR chapter, said the commission will discuss in detail the issue and accordingly decide on future course of action. The meeting has been fixed for early next week, official sources said. 

The commission will ask the CBI whether or not the missing files were hampering or going to hamper its investigation in the case, the sources said.

The CBI had on 14 August written a letter to the coal ministry stating that 225 files and documents relating to coal blocks allocation cases had still not been handed over to it by the coal ministry. This included 167 files pertaining to pre-2004 era during which National Democratic Alliance (NDA) was in power. The CBI has said that these files and documents were necessary for concluding the probe against various firms booked by the agency for alleged manipulation and concealing of facts. 

However, the coal ministry had requested the CBI to scrutinise the files already seized by them as the missing documents could be annexed to these files.

The CVC, which exercises superintendence over the CBI to oversee probe in corruption cases, had in May last year asked the agency to look into the matter of coal blocks allocated to private companies between 2006 and 2009. 

The CBI is looking into the allocation of coal mines post-1993 to ascertain any wrongdoing during the NDA regime. The CBI has registered three preliminary inquiries and 13 FIRs so far in the case. The move came up after coal minister Sriprakash Jaiswal had on 17 August said that some files related to coal block allocations were missing. 

Following Jaiswal’s remarks, Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) has targeted the government and paralysed Parliament over the issue and demanded a statement by Prime Minister Manmohan Singh. The coal ministry had then hurriedly formed a committee to look into the matter. 

Bowing to the demands of an agitated opposition, the coal minister had on Friday made a detailed statement in Rajya Sabha over the issue and said that “it would be wrong to classify any file or document as missing at this stage when an inter-ministerial committee is actively engaged in locating these papers”.

 

 

 

Source: PTI