Coal scam: CBI asked to reply on accused' plea to inspect docs

A special court today directed the CBI to furnish a detailed reply before it about the documents, which were sought to be inspected by two accused in a coal scam case, and specify whether they were relevant to the case.
Special CBI Judge Bharat Parashar asked the agency to give specific averments regarding these documents and their relevance to the case.
"You give a categorical statement about these documents. Give a point-wise reply and make specific averments in it. You clarify if these documents are relevant to the case or not," the judge told senior public prosecutor A P Singh.

The case pertains to alleged irregularities in allocation of Rampia and dip side of Rampia coal block in Odisha to M/s Navbharat Power Pvt Ltd (NPPL), now known as Brahmani Thermal Power Pvt Ltd (BTPPL), in January 2008.
During the hearing, the court asked the agency to confine its reply only to the aspect of inspection of these documents by the two accused, BTPPL's Chairman P Trivikrama Prasad and its Vice-Chairman Y Harish Chandra Prasad.
Both the accused have moved application seeking to inspect various coal scam related documents which are in CBI's possession.

"The issue is that they (accused) want to inspect these documents. You confine your response to this aspect only. If accused will say that they want copies of these documents then I will see later whether these documents can be supplied to them," the judge said.

"Senior public prosecutor has been told to furnish a detailed response as to the documents whose inspection has been sought for by the accused persons," the court noted in its order and fixed the matter for hearing on November 26.
Besides Trivikrama Prasad and Harish Chandra Prasad, former Coal Secretary H C Gupta, two senior public servants, K S Kropha and K C Samria, are accused in the case along with the firm. These accused are now out on bail.
The court had summoned them for alleged offences under sections 120-B (criminal conspiracy), 409 (criminal breach of trust by public servants) and 420 (cheating) of IPC and under Prevention of Corruption Act.

CBI had earlier filed a charge sheet against NPPL, Trivikrama Prasad and Harish Chandra Prasad for alleged criminal conspiracy and cheating under IPC and said in its final report that no offence was found to have been committed by the public servants.