Summon Manmohan as accused in Coalgate case, Koda tells court
Sana Shakil
New Delhi:
`ULTIMATE FINAL AUTHORITY SHOULDN'T GO SCOT FREE'
Jharkhand's former chief minister Madhu Koda on Monday moved an application before a special court seeking summoning of former Prime Minister Manmohan Singh as an accused in a coal scam case, saying that the “ultimate final authority“ cannot be allowed to go “scot free“. Koda, who has been chargesheeted along with industrialist Naveen Jindal, also sought the summoning of two others as accused in the case.
Seeking that Singh, Anand Swaroop, the then secretary (energy), and Jai Shankar Tiwari, the then secretary (mines and geology) be made accused, Koda contended that CBI's theory of conspiracy remained incomplete without the involvement of the then PM who held the portfolio of coal ministry . Koda said Singh had the “final say“ in the allocations of coal blocks, and could not escape the consequences of his decision. The case pertains to alleged irregularities in allocation of Amarkonda Murgadangal coal block in Jharkhand to two Jindal group companies, Jindal Steel and Power Ltd (JSPL) and Gagan Sponge Iron Pvt Ltd (GSIPL). Koda, Jindal and 13 others were chargesheeted by the CBI in the case earlier.
“The materials on record show that the coal minister was aware of the facts of the case and had taken the decision consciously with full application of mind to allot coal block to JSPL and GSIPL...which according to the CBI is the result of conspiracy and is illegal. Hence, he (Singh) is also required to be summoned,“ Koda said in his plea filed before special CBI judge Bharat Parashar .
Koda alleged that the “whole and sole responsibility“ of coal block allocation rests with the coal minister as he was the final authority to take decision. Koda argued that the court must consider that the case of all the other accused “stand(s) on a better footing as compared to Dr Manmohan Singh“ who took the ultimate decision to allot the coal block to JSPL and GSIPL.
Ex-PM okayed changes made by me: Koda
Former Jharkhand CM Madhu Koda, who on Monday demanded that former PM Manmohan Singh be made a co-accused in the coal scam, can find support from a report of the CAG in 2013. The CAG report No.1 of 2013 of Jharkhand revenue sector, tabled in Parliament in July 2013 as Jharkhand was under President's rule, said that in 2007, the coal ministry under Manmohan Singh approved alterations made by Koda to allot coal mines to companies not approved by the screening committee set up by the Jharkhand government. Koda had made additions of his own at the final stage, bypassing the screening mechanism. The screening committee, which had vetted 210 applications and approved 10, was rendered irrelevant though it was supposed to be the chief mechanism for determining the eligibility of companies vying for coal deposits. The federal auditor questioned the inclusion of five new companies not recommended by the screening committee and exclusion of three companies recommended by the panel. TNN
