SC grants 4 weeks to CBI to file status report on pending coal scam cases

The Supreme Court on Wednesday granted four weeks' time to the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) to file a status report on pending coal scam cases and progress into the probe relating to charges of abuse of official position by former CBI chief Ranjit Sinha, who allegedly tried to scuttle the probe in this regard.

A Bench of Chief Justice SA Bobde and Justice Deepak Gupta granted time to the CBI after the agency sought four weeks to file a status report in the matter.

The top court had earlier constituted an SIT, headed by former CBI special director ML Sharma, to look into the prima facie allegations against Sinha for trying to influence the probe in coal scam cases.

Besides dealing with the SIT issue, the bench also dealt with other matters related to the case, including the status reports filed earlier by the CBI and the ED.

The court has been perusing various status report filed by ED and CBI with regard to the investigation of the coal scam cases and their stages of the trial.

The top court was earlier informed that the SIT headed by Sharma had held that the former CBI chief's alleged meetings with some high-profile accused in the coal scam prima facie indicated that there was an attempt to influence the probe.

The apex court had on December 7, 2015, ordered the handing over of the original visitors' diary of the official residence of Sinha to Sharma-led SIT.