Apex court asks CVC to scrutinise coal allocation papers

After the CBI informed the Supreme Court that it would file closure report in 20 cases pertaining to illegal coal block allocation cases due to difference of opinion among officials, the apex court on Friday asked CVC to scrutinise the documents of the cases.

A bench headed by Justice Lodha asked the chief vigilance commissioner and two vigilance commissioners to give their suggestions whether the cases can be closed or the CBI can go ahead with the filing of charge sheets in them and file a report before it within a month time.

The court also directed the probe agency to place the documents of all 20 cases within five days before the CVC for its perusal.

DIG Ravi Kant Sharma, who supervises the coal scam probe along with other two officers of the same rank, told the bench that he had given opinion for filing charge sheet in two cases in which the agency has filed closure report on Thursday.

Appearing for CBI, senior counsel Amerender Sharan said that the investigating officer had opined to close the case which was rejected by the senior officer but the officers approved the opinion of IO after which closure report was filed.

The CBI has initiated several cases on coal block allocations, including those against MP Naveen Jindal and former minister of state for coal Dasari Narayan Rao, in relation to coal block allocation and against K M Birla and former coal secretary P C Parakh for alleged illegality in grant of blocks to Hindalco Industries Ltd.

So far the agency filed charge sheets in two cases and closure report in two other cases.