CBI seeks govt nod to prosecute two officials in Coalgate

NEW DELHI: The CBI has sought sanction from the government to prosecute two senior officers summoned as accused in a coal blocks allocation scam case.
The agency informed Special CBI judge Bharat Parashar on Monday that a request for grant of sanction to prosecute then Joint Secretary of Coal Ministry K S Kropha, and then Director (Coal Allocation-I section) K C Samaria -- for the alleged offences punishable under the Prevention of Corruption Act, has been sent to the authorities.
The court then fixed the case for further hearing on January 16. This specific case in coal allocation scam relates to alleged misrepresentation of facts, including inflated net worth, by Madhya Pradesh-based company Kamal Sponge Steel and Power Ltd (KSSPL) to acquire Thesgora-B/Rudrapuri coal block in the state.
The court had earlier summoned former Coal Secretary H C Gupta, Kropha, Samaria, KSSPL's Managing Director Pawan Kumar Ahluwalia, chartered accountant Amit Goyal as accused in the case after refusing to accept CBI's closure report.
These five individual accused were earlier granted bail by the court after they had appeared before it to answer the summons in the case where agency has invoked sections 120-B (criminal conspiracy), 409 (criminal breach of trust by public servant) and 420 (cheating) under IPC. Gupta has been further summoned for the offences punishable under the Prevention of Corruption Act.
In October this year the Special CBI court had noted that since Samaria and Kropha were still in active government service, no cognizance of alleged offences punishable under the Prevention of Corruption Act could to taken against them unless CBI produces sanction order.
Refusing to accept closure report the judge had earlier summoned the accused in the case saying public servants had allegedly abused their official positions and acted against public interest due to which KSSPL obtained pecuniary advantage.
CBI, in its FIR lodged in the case, alleged that officials of KSSPL furnished unaudited balance sheet and had allegedly inflated its capacity to produce sponge iron by 25 percent.