Against the backdrop of the Supreme Court’s directions, the CBI is preparing to give a fresh list of documents and files required by the agency from the coal ministry for completing its ongoing probe into the coalgate scam.
The agency, sources said, is likely to seek applications of 157 private companies which had applied for 45 blocks between 1993 to 2005 from the ministry, besides seeking minutes of the meeting of the 26th, 35th and 36th screening committees.
Sources said the CBI is expected to send a fresh list of documents which are required by it to the ministry either on Monday or Tuesday. Slamming the Centre for not providing documents even after repeated reminders by the CBI, the SC had on August 29 asked the CBI to give the list of documents, files and information sought by it within five days to the coal ministry, which, in turn, has been directed to furnish them within two weeks thereafter.
“The agency will seek from the ministry presentation and feedback forms submitted by two private companies for the allocation of the Lohara East coal block in Maharashtra and the Thesgora-B/Rudrapuri coal block in Madhya Pradesh before the screening committees. The allocations of both the coal blocks were made in 2008. Despite repeated reminders by the agency, the ministry has not provided these documents to the CBI so far,” sources said. Besides, the CBI will certainly seek copies of the 157 private companies which had applied for 45 blocks between 1993 and 2005.
The agency suspects that around 157 private companies were allegedly eliminated irregularly to favour ineligible beneficiary companies in the allocation of captive coal blocks, they said.
The top court also directed the coal ministry to lodge a complaint with the CBI if it fails to trace any documents sought by the agency.
“The CBI will initiate proceedings under the destruction of evidence act if the coal ministry files a complaint pertaining to the ‘missing’ files related to the coalgate scam. If documents have gone missing, the ministry is supposed to file a criminal case. We will definitely proceed with the destruction of evidence case if we receive a formal response from the ministry,” sources said.