SC to hear pleas of ex-PM Singh, Bagrodia together

Legal Correspondent
New Delhi, April 6

The Supreme Court today agreed to hear the plea of former Minister of State for Coal Santosh Bagrodia in the coal scam case along with that of ex-Prime Minister Manmohan Singh.

On April 1, 2015, the Supreme Court stayed the trial of Singh in a case of alleged criminal conspiracy and corruption in the allocation of Talabira coal blocks (II & III) in Odisha to Hindalco, an Aditya Birla group company, in 2005. Bagrodia is also facing charges of irregularities in the allocation of coal blocks.

The apex court had also stayed the trial court proceedings in the case and granted similar relief to five others -- Aditya Birla Group Chairman Kumar Mangalam Birla, the then coal secretary PC Parakh, Hindalco and its Managing Director D Bhattacharya and Shubendu Amitabh, Group Executive President of ABMPCL, another company of the Aditya Birla Group.

Initially, Bagrodia had pleaded with the Supreme Court to treat him on a par with Singh by staying his trial also or let him approach the Delhi High Court by lifting the Supreme Court mandate that coal scam cases could be heard only by the trial court or the Supreme Court in order to cut delays.

But an apex court Bench comprising Justices MB Lokur, Kurian Joseph and AK Sikri had asked Bagrodia to file a modified petition seeking the restoration of high court’s jurisdiction. The ex-minister has complied with this advice.

Singh has also questioned the validity of legal provisions that allowed the prosecution of ministers and bureaucrats for error of judgment while taking bona fide decisions.