The Great Indian Loot

Iron Ore, Coal, Manganese, Thorium

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Coalgate: logic of naming Birla is to tar system and maybe save PM

The naming of business doyen Kumar Mangalam Birla in a first information report (FIR) relating to the coal blocks allocation scam confirms the suspicion that the Congress is working towards a clean scuttling of the Central Bureau of Investigation’s probe.

If the CBI is going to go after every businessman, every politician, every bureaucrat, never mind the quality of the evidence against them, it will end up creating such a mess that no one will want it solved.

There is no other logic for including somebody so far above in the food chain in what could, at worst, be a decision taken at much lower levels to push the Birla group’s case for a coal block allocation. The group has pointed out that a request for the Talabira – II block was first made in 1996 (by Indal, which was subsequently taken over by the Birlas’ Hindalco). Hindalco finally got it after nine years in 2005.

The only bonafide reason for including Birla’s name could be the extraordinary one of “command responsibility” – which means the top man is directly responsible for the mistakes or wrongs done by someone far lower down. But if this is the logic, it is surprising why the man at the centre of the scam – Prime Minister Manmohan Singh – has been left out in the naming ceremonies.

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Coalgate: Ex-top bureaucrats back Parakh's accusation on PM

Former top bureaucrats have come out in support of ex-Coal Secretary P C Parakh, who has been named by CBI in the coal blocks allocation scam, warning that harassment of honest officers will erode Government's credibility and stop senior officers from taking decisions. "Parakh, as I have known him, is an honest, competent officer. While I do not wish to comment on the CBI investigation as such, as I do not have all the facts, I am at a loss to understand how an FIR has been filed only against him and no one in the PMO and no Minister," said E A S Sarma, former Coal Secretary. If it is a case of conspiracy, all the conspirators should be taken into account. I hope there is no conspiracy!, said Sarma, a former IAS officer.

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PC Parakh: A Spotless Record

Bureaucrats who know him, all call him an upright officer. The Comproller and Auditor General characterised him as a whistleblower in its report on the coal scam. But now he is under the scanner of the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) on charges of alleged criminal conspiracy.

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Coal scam: CBI books former coal secy, KM Birla

The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) on Tuesday lodged a case against former coal secretary PC Parekh and chairman of the Aditya Birla Group Kumar Mangalam Birla for alleged irregularities in the allocation of two coal blocks in Odisha in 2005.

A CBI spokesperson said an inter-ministerial screening committee had allocated two coal blocks at Talabira-2 in Jharsuguda district of Odisha exclusively to the Tamil Nadu-based public sector unit Neyveli Lignite Corporation (NLC) under the government dispensation scheme.

But later, it allowed Hindalco to share these blocks with NLC. The change came after a meeting between KM Birla and the then coal secretary PC Parekh, the spokesperson said.

However, the agency has so far found no evidence of any quid pro quo between the two, a CBI official said.

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Coalgate: CBI officer says need to examine PM, director says not now

The probe into coal block allocations has been a burning issue not only in Parliament and the apex court but now also within the Central Bureau of Investigation. This time, the heat has been generated within the agency over the need to "examine" Prime Minister Manmohan Singh who held the Coal portfolio between 2006 and 2009.

Top sources told The Indian Express that in the progress report prepared last month, CBI's superintendent of police K R Chaurasia, an investigating officer in the case, put on record what he called the "requirement'' to examine the Prime Minister among a lengthy list of "pending actions'' in the case.

These included examination of various other government and non-government officials as well as exhaustive scrutiny of records.

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Illegal mining: MB Shah Commission gets 3-month extension

The Union Government has extended the tenure of Justice MB Shah Commission, which is inquiring into illegal iron ore and manganese ore mining, giving it time until October to submit its final report.

“The Cabinet, headed by Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, today decided to give Justice MB Shah Commission an extension of three months,” an official source said.

On reports of large scale illegal mining and failure of states to effectively curb this menace, Centre had set up the one-man panel in November, 2010. It was initially supposed to submit the final report within 18 months from the date of first sitting.

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SC pulls up govt, asks it to explain coal blocks allocation method

The Supreme Court on Wednesday directed the central government to file an affidavit, along with supporting material, in four weeks explaining the procedure and methodology that was adopted for the allocation of 164 coal blocks.

An apex court bench headed by Justice R M Lodha gave this direction after perusing a Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) status report about the on-going investigation into the coal blocks allocation.

In the report, the probe agency said the procedure adopted by the coal ministry and the screening committee for allocation of the coal blocks was arbitrary.

The CBI in its report, extracts of which were read in the court, said there was no material about the decision-making process and the minutes were either not maintained or were sketchy.

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Coalgate: CBI may question Naveen Jindal this week

Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) is likely to question ruling party Congress MP Naveen Jindal this week in connection with its FIR against him and his company for alleged cheating while applying for coal block.

CBI sources said Jindal, who has been named as accused along with the former Minister for State for Coal Dasari Narayan Rao in its 13th FIR, would be questioned this week.

According to the FIR, Jindal Steel and Power Limited and Gagan Sponge Iron Ltd, also a firm belonging to Jindal, had bagged Amarkonda Murgadangal coal block in Jharkhand in 2008 by alleged misrepresentation of facts when Rao was the Minister of State for Coal.

Within a year, a block was allocated to JSPL in January 2008, CBI sources claimed, noting that shares of Rao’s firm Saubhagya Media listed at Rs 28 that time were purchased by one of Jindal’s firm — New Delhi Exim Ltd — at a whopping Rs 100 per share with total investment of nearly Rs 2.25 crore which is alleged to be illegal gratification.

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PM's boys nixed ex-coal secy over auction ordinance back in 2004!

PC Parakh, widely considered the whistleblower of Coalgate, tells Governance Now how it all stacked up, and that he regrets even comptroller & auditor general Vinod Rai missed the resultant machinations that perpetuated massive loot of taxpayer’s money.

In March 2004, PC Parakh, asked a curious – and as it turned out, clairvoyant – question to Kamal Pande, the then cabinet secretary. “Why have I been picked up for the job of coal secretary?” he asked.

Pande, the seasoned Kumaoni Brahmin, remained enigmatic, but Parakh recalled, “He did confirm that there were several contenders for what’s considered a lucrative job!”

It’s seldom remembered that Mamata Banerjee was the coal minister at that time. So she, in technical sense, for the act of accepting Parakh in her ministry, planted a whistleblower among the coal mafia!

“Yes, I was surprised how I was picked up (for the job of coal secretary),” Parakh told me during a conversation, “but it is also true that by then she (Mamata) had got busy with preparations for the general elections.”

So nothing really exciting came off in the new coal secretary’s life between March and May 2004. Likewise, the ‘screening committee’, created to legitimise the government’s opening of gates of coal in 1993.

As coal secretary, Parakh remained wary of chairing the committee and handing out lucrative coal mines to private-sector applicants, the chosen dispensation of rewarding political donors. It was the lack of process and norm that scandalised Parakh – particularly the system of keeping everyone happy by subdividing a mine.

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Coal Scam: Two more show cause notices issued

Press Trust of India reported that the Coal Ministry issued show cause notices to two firms, Jindal Steel and Power Limited and Tenughat Vidyut Nigam Limited, for not developing coal blocks allocated to them within the stipulated time-frame.

According to the Coal Ministry, the notices were issued to the companies for not beginning production from Ram Chandi Promotional CTL Block and Badam coal blocks respectively.

The crackdown is part of the government's exercise to ensure that the allocated blocks do not remain unproductive.

The development comes close on the heels of the Coal Ministry issuing show-cause notices to 23 firms, including SAIL, Monnet Ispat, NTPC and GVK Power earlier this month for not developing the mines allotted to them for captive use.

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Coal Scam: ex-members of Prime Minister's Office questioned

The coal scam, which has already hit the government hard, now appears to be edging in the Prime Minister's Office. As part of its investigation, the CBI has this week questioned two bureaucrats  who were posted in the Prime Minister's Office when the coal blocks were allotted to private firms at undervalued prices. The officials were reportedly asked for details of some coal fields that were allotted to private firms between 2006 and 2009, when Dr Manmohan Singh held direct charge of the Coal Ministry.

An earlier controversy related to members of the Prime Minister's Office vetting a report by the CBI that was meant to update the supreme Court on its investigation. Ashwani Kumar was forced to quit as Law Minister over allegations that he asked for changes to the report to protect the government. The CBI is scheduled to give the Supreme Court another  on July 10.

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Naveen Jindal bribed former MoS coal, gave him Rs 2.25 cr: CBI

The CBI has booked former Minister of State for Coal Dasari Narayan Rao and Congress MP and industrialist Naveen Jindal for alleged cheating, graft and criminal misconduct in its 12th FIR in the coal blocks allocation scam, causing embarrassment to the ruling Congress.

During its eight-month long probe into the scam, it is for the first time the then Minister of State has been named as accused in an FIR by CBI in which it has alleged that he received Rs 2.25 crore camoflaguged as investment from one of Jindal’s firm within a year of allocating him a coal block.

CBI sources said Jindal Steel and Power Limited and Gagan Sponge Iron Limited, also a firm of Jindal’s, had bagged Amarkonda Murgadangal coal block in Birbhum, Jharkhand in the year 2008 by alleged misrepresentation of facts when Rao was the Minister of State for Coal.

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Coalgate: CBI names Naveen Jindal, fmr MoS Coal Dasari Narayan Rao

The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) has filed an FIR against the Jindal Group in the coal scam. The FIR names Congress MP Naveen Jindal and former Minister of State for Coal Dasari Narayan Rao.

The FIR has accused Jindal and his company Jindal Power and Steel Ltd of misrepresentation of networth and concealing previous allotment. They are also charged with cheating and forgery.

This is the twelfth FIR filed in the coal scam and the investigative agency is reportedly conducting searches at 19 places in Delhi, Hyderabad and Kolkata.

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Coal scam: Jindal Steel, Naveen Jindal named in criminal case

Shares in Naveen Jindal promoted Jindal Steel and Power crashed as much as 24 per cent after the Central Bureau of Investigation registered a first information report against the duo for allegedly misrepresenting crucial information to land valuable coal fields from the government. "Coal-Gate" is being investigated by the country's premier investigating agency, the CBI. The FIR against his company lists cheating and conspiracy as charges. Mr Jindal has in the past denied allegations of wrong doing.   Corporate lawyer HP Ranina said Mr Jindal will be called for questioning. The CBI will be investigating the matter further before a charge sheet is filed, he added.

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Must Read: PMO, coal scam, the missing sentence and the CBI

Did the principal secretary to the prime minister authorise the controversial meeting a joint secretary at the PMO had at the CBI headquarters to discuss the coal scam report, asks T V R Shenoy.

"The heart of the report was changed on the suggestion of government officials,' the Supreme Court observed on May 8, 2013, referring to the CBI report on the Coal Allotment Scam.

Three questions arise.

Who was the surgeon?

In which hospital was the heart transplanted?

And when was the operation carried out?

Conventional wisdom points a finger at then law minister Ashwani Kumar. But reading the nine-page affidavit filed by CBI Director Ranjit Sinha on May 6 and the observations of the apex court raises intriguing questions.

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Coalgate: Showcause notices to 32 coal block allocatees

Government is likely to issue show cause notices to allocatees of 32 captive coal blocks, including Jindal Steel and Power, NTPC, Tata Steel and SAIL, for failing to develop the blocks on time. The decision to crackdown on the allocatees was taken in a meeting of inter-ministerial group (IMG) on May 1, sources said, adding the show cause notices would be issued soon. The developers would be given up to a month's time to respond as to why their blocks should not get cancelled owing to the delays in the development of their respective blocks. Click here to read the full article

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Heart of coal report changed, says SC

The Supreme Court Wednesday said it was perturbed by the CBI changing the "heart" of the coal blocks allotment probe status report at the instance of its "masters" and ordered the agency's director to ensure that Law Minister Ashwani Kumar and other ministers do not have access to such reports in the future. The keenly-watched hearing lasted three hours and witnessed the CBI incurring the wrath of the court for its submissiveness to outsiders who could come under the ambit of the probe. But the law minister got some breathing space with the bench deciding to postpone examining his authority to call for the reports and make changes in them before submission to the court. "Henceforth, the CBI director shall ensure that in the matter of inquiry and investigation of allocation of coal blocks, no access of any nature is provided to any persons or authority, including the minister of concerned department, law minister or any other central minister, law officers, CBI counsels, director of prosecution or any other person outside the investigation team," the bench led by Justice R M Lodha said.

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