Special court summons Ex-PM Dr Manmohan Singh, KM Birla in coal scam case
A Special Court has summoned former Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, Kumar Mangalam Birla, along with a couple of highly-placed executives in Hindalco to appear before court on April 8 in the coal scam case. Former coal secretary PC Parakh has also been summoned.
Mr Singh has been accused of criminal conspiracy and ordered to appear in court on 8 April. In 2012, federal auditors said India had lost $33bn (£20bn) because coalfield rights were sold off cheaply. Last September, India’s Supreme Court cancelled almost all the coal mining licenses awarded by the government since 1993, saying they were illegal.
Special CBI Judge Bharat Parashar summoned the six accused on April 8 for the alleged offences punishable under Sections 120B (criminal conspiracy) and 409 (criminal breach of trust by public servant, or by banker, merchant or agent) of the IPC and under the provisions of the Prevention of Corruption Act (PCA).
“I am upset, but this is a part of life,” Manmohan Singh
“I am sure that the truth will prevail and I will get a chance to put forward my case with facts,” the former PM added.
The scam dubbed “coalgate” surfaced after the CAG report in 2012 questioned the government’s practice of awarding coal mining concessions to companies without competitive bidding.
