CBI to close coal block allocation case against Kumar Mangalam

Case against the two was registered in Oct last year by the agency which had alleged that Parakh had reversed his decision to reject coal block allocation to Hindalco

After a 10-month probe, CBI has decided to file a closure report in the coal block allocation case involving industrialist Kumar Mangalam Birla and former Coal Secretary P C Parakh as the agency could not find any evidence in this matter.

The case against the two was registered in October last year by the agency which had alleged that Parakh had reversed his decision to reject coal block allocation to Hindalco within months "without any valid basis or change in circumstances" and to show "undue favours".

The FIR related to allocation of Talabira II and III coal blocks in 2005 and CBI had charged Birla, Parakh and other officials of Hindalco under various IPC sections including criminal conspiracy and criminal misconduct on the part of government officials.

However, during the investigations, the CBI found that there was no "quid pro quo" on the part of Parakh and there was no wrongdoing in allocation of coal blocks to Hindalco, agency sources said today.

The case had triggered an intense attack against the CBI by the former bureaucrat and India Inc but the agency Director Ranjit Sinha had maintained that a final decision on it would be taken only after the probe was over.

Unfazed by the criticism, Sinha had repeatedly said that the agency was not in the business of witch-hunting and a closure report would be filed in case there was no evidence.

The sources now said that a closure report will be filed in the court after which the court will decide about the investigations carried out by the agency.