Hindalco falls 5.6% on further coal probe order

Shares of Hindalco Industries on Tuesday plunged 5.6 per cent amid fresh concerns related to the Talabira-II coal block allocation to the company. Stock tumbled 5.67 per cent to settle at Rs 144.70 on the BSE. In intra-day trade, it had lost 7.49 per cent to a low of Rs 141.90. On the National Stock Exchange (NSE), it crashed 5.19 per cent to close at Rs 145.25.

On the volume front, 2.53 million shares of the company changed hands at the BSE, while about 10 million were traded at the NSE during the day. The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) was on Tuesday told by a trial court to record statements of the former prime minister Manmohan Singh in the case of Talabira II coal block allocation to Hindalco, when he was also coal minister in 2005.

Sending the matter back to CBI for further investigation after it had filed a closure report in the case, judge Bharat Parashar said it would be "appropriate" the then coal minister be "first examined" regarding various aspects of the matter. The case pertains to allocation of Talabira II coal block in Odisha to Hindalco.

The CBI had earlier lodged an FIR against Kumar Mangalam Birla, former coal secretary P C Parakh, Hindalco Industries and other unknown persons and officials for the offence under section 120-B (criminal conspiracy) of the IPC and under provisions of the Prevention of Corruption Act.