DNA Edit: Milestone judgment – HC Gupta’s conviction shatters bureaucratic immunity

Much as can be said about the conviction of former Coal Secretary HC Gupta, there is little doubt that the judgment marks a milestone in nailing the notoriously leaden-footed Indian bureaucracy. While the country’s officialdom is a deeply divided lot, when it comes to picking up plum ministries and departments, they are known to close ranks at the first sign of trouble. And that is what appears to have happened with the imprisonment of the former official, along with two junior IAS colleagues, KS Kropha and KC Samria, by a Delhi court on November 30. All the three have been fined Rs 50,000 each. Gupta a retired IAS official of the 1971 batch, was the chairman of the screening committee that allocated coal blocks, while Kropha was a Joint Secretary and Samria, a Director in the Ministry of Coal. 

While Gupta’s former colleagues are up in arms, morally hurt by the nailing of an `honest and upright’ officer whose reputation is above reproach, the CBI court found positive signs of misconduct. In his verdict, CBI Special Judge Bharat Parashar observed that Gupta, who served as Coal Secretary from December 2005 to November 2008 along with Kropha and Samria, had withheld information from the then Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, who held additional charge as Coal Minister.   Not limited to that, he said that the three officers had distorted facts while recommending a private company, Bengal-based Vikash Metals and Power Limited, for the allotment of two coal blocks. An official, according to service conduct rules, is expected to render advice to a politician, on the basis of expert committee reports and knowledgeable insight, but in this case, that ‘advice’ turned out to be willfuly incorrect. Gupta’s conviction has done a lot to shatter than immunity.