CBI tells SC it shared coal blocks probe report

New Delhi, April 26 (IANS) The CBI Friday told the Supreme Court that it shared its March 8 status report on investigations into coal blocks allocation with Union Minister for Law and Justice Ashwani Kumar and a senior bureaucrat in the Prime Minister's Office.

But the investigating agency's status report of April 26 has not been shared with anyone, including the political executive, Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) director Ranjit Sinha told the apex court.

In an affidavit filed in the apex court Friday, the CBI director said: "In respect of the query raised by the this hon'ble court about the sharing of the contents of the status report dated March 8, 2013 with the political executive, I submit that the draft of the same (March 8 status report) was shared with hon'ble union minister for Law and Justice as desired by him prior to its submission before the hon'ble court."

The affidavit revealed that "besides the political executive, it was also shared with one joint secretary level officer each of the Prime Minister's Office, and ministry of coal, as desired by them".

Sinha's affidavit came in response to the apex court's March 12 order asking him whether the March 8 status report was vetted by him and whether its contents were shared with the political executive.

The order was passed by a bench of Justice R.M. Lodha, Justice J. Chelameswar and Justice Madan B. Lokur.

However, the CBI director in his affidavit also told the court that the investigating agency's status report of April 26 has been personally vetted by him, and not shared with anyone, including the political executive.

The apex court by its said order had directed the CBI director that the agency will not share information of its probe into the scam with the political executive (central government) and the director would personally vet status reports submitted to the court.

In the course of the March 12 hearing of the matter, the law officers of the government had told the court that the report has not been shared with the political executive so much so that even they were not privy to it as it was in sealed cover.

In the meanwhile, it is learnt that senior counsel U.U.Lalit will represent the CBI in the hearing of the coal allocation scam case before the apex court. As of now, the Additional Solicitor General Harin Rawal represents CBI in the case. Lalit is special prosecutor in the 2G special court holding trial of 2G cases.