First charge-sheet by CBI likely today

New Delhi : The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) is set to file three charge-sheets in the Coalgate scam in a trial court here on Monday. The agency will also file a status report in the Supreme Court on Monday, informing it of the progress made in the probe. A charge-sheet is likely to be filed against the promoters of Navabharat Power Private Limited for misrepresenting facts.

The SC had asked CBI on February 11 to submit a status report about filing of charge-sheet in six of the cases finalised by the agency.

CBI has filed over 16 FIRs against various firms including AMR Iron and Steel, JLD Yavatmal Energy, Vini Iron and Steel, JAS Infrastructure Capital, Grace Industries, Jindal Steel and Power, Rathi Steel and Power etc.

Some more companies against which FIRs have been filed are Jharkhand Ispat, Green Infrastructure, Kamal Sponge, Pushp Steel, Hindalco, BLA Industries, Castron Technologies and Castron Mining and Nav Bharat Power Private Limited. These FIRs were registered after the agency probed three preliminary enquiries related to coal block allocation between 2006 and 2009, 1993 and 2004 and projects given under a government scheme.

CBI may also inform the apex court about the permission sought from nine States which are reluctant in allowing the agency to conduct probe in their jurisdiction. CBI was directed to file charge-sheet in all the cases finalised by it by first week of March, but the agency moved a petition on March 4, seeking more time to file the charge-sheet in the cases. "The CBI is strenuously making efforts to meet the deadline fixed by the court. Inquiry or investigation in all three PEs and arising out of 14 cases are being attended to simultaneously. In the process, reaching a logical conclusion is taking its due time," the agency said.

"For these reasons, forming an opinion in terms of Section 173(2) of Criminal Procedure Code (filing of charge-sheet) on the basis of scrutiny of evidence collected in six completed RCs and preparation of final report would take some more time for submission before the appropriate trial court," CBI had said in its plea before the apex court. In its earlier status report before the Supreme court, CBI had said inquiries in respect of 87 companies had been finalised besides probe in respect of 38 companies had been concluded.

It was stated that reports were in the process of scrutiny for getting final order from the competent authority.

CBI had informed the court that field inquiries pertaining to 149 out of 169 companies had been completed and similar probe pertaining to the remaining 20 companies, including ultra mega power projects (UMPPs) and coal to liquid (CTL), was in progress. CBI said that inquires and investigation in other PEs and all RCs would be completed by April 30. Given the dimension and spread of the scam, the court had ordered CBI and Enforcement Directorate (ED) to "share information with each other in respect of the matters having bearing on investigation of money laundering and foreign exchange and ensure that the investigation is not hampered in any manner whatsoever".

According to the Comptroller and Auditor General (CAG), an estimated loss of Rs 1.86 lakh crore was caused to the national exchequer in the allocation of 64 coal blocks nation-wide.