Coal block case: Court notice to CVC director

A court here on Thursday issued notice to the director of the Central Vigilance Commission (CVC) while hearing a closure report in a coal block allocation case allegedly involving Prakash Industries Ltd.

Observing that the case was registered on the basis of a reference received from the CVC, Special Judge Bharat Parashar issued notice to the CVC director seeking his response.

The court was hearing a case related to alleged irregularities in allocation of Chhattisgarh's Fatehpur coal block.

The Central Bureau of Investigation filed a closure report requesting the court to close the case on the ground that neither against the private parties nor against any of the public servants involved in the coal block allocation process any incriminating evidence could come on record which may warrant their prosecution.

"In the overall facts and circumstances of the case, and in view of the submissions made, before proceeding to pass any order on the closure report, I deem it appropriate that a notice be issued to Keshav Rao, director of the CVC under whose signatures the reference from the CVC was received by CBI," the court said.

However, the court clarified that in case Rao has since got transferred from the CVC or has been posted at some other place, then the officer succeeding him may be called.

The court posted the matter for August 26 for consideration.

According to the CBI, the Fatehpur coal block was allocated jointly to Prakash Industries and another company by the 35th Screening Committee and lodged a first information report against the company, its three officials, some officials of the coal ministry and others alleging that the firm misrepresented its net worth while applying for the coal block.

The CBI booked them under various sections dealing with criminal conspiracy read with cheating and provisions of the Prevention of Corruption Act.