PMO defends Hindalco coal block allocation as 'appropriate'

Breaking its silence over the controversial allocation of coal block to Hindalco, the Prime Minister's Office today defended the decision as "appropriate" and said Prime Minister Manmohan Singh had approved it on the basis of "merits" of the case placed before him.
The PMO denied any criminality in the allocation of the coal block to a joint venture, including Kumar Mangalam Birla headed Hindalco, while making it clear that Singh was the 'competent authority' who cleared the proposal for Talabira coal block allotment mooted by the Coal Ministry in 2005.
It acknowledged that the final decision of October 1,2005 "differed" from the earlier recommendation of the screening committee and released details of the sequence of events which suggested that the norms set by the Prime Minister were relaxed in view of representations made by Birla and Odisha Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik.

"The Prime Minister is satisfied that the final decision taken in this regard was entirely appropriate and based on the merits of the case placed before him," the PMO said in a statement here amidst a major uproar over the issue.
While defending the decision, the PMO referred to Singh's statements earlier that the government has nothing to hide and it will fully cooperate with CBI which is probing the case.
The allocation of Talabira coal block in Odisha is in the eye of a storm with CBI booking Aditya Birla Group Chairman Kumar Mangalam Birla and former Coal Secretary P C Parakh four days back.

Parakh has said if he is accused of conspiracy, then the Prime Minister also should be made an accused as he had approved the revised decision, prompting the BJP to demand his resignation.
Acknowledging that the final decision was taken on an altered recommendation, the PMO said, "This was done following a representation received in the Prime Minister's Office from one of the parties, which was referred to the Ministry of Coal," an apparent reference to Birla's two letters.
The PMO said CBI is free to investigate the case as it may have got hold of some documents post-allocation.