Latest news with #JASInfrastructureCapitalLtd
New Indian Express
2 days ago
- Politics
- New Indian Express
Ex-secy HC Gupta acquitted in coal block allocation case
NEW DELHI: A Delhi court on Friday acquitted former coal secretary H C Gupta, ex-joint secretary K S Kropha, and former director K C Samaria in a case linked to alleged irregularities in the allocation of the Mahugarhi coal block in Jharkhand. The case dates back to the coal allocation scam that shook the country a decade ago. For Gupta, this marks a second acquittal in coal block-related cases, though he has been convicted in five others. His appeals in those matters are pending before the Delhi High Court. The CBI, which has filed 19 cases against him, is also contesting his first acquittal. Twelve of those cases remain pending before trial courts. While the three former officials were cleared on Friday, Special Judge Sanjay Bansal convicted JAS Infrastructure Capital Ltd and its then director, Manoj Kumar Jayaswal, on charges of cheating and criminal conspiracy in relation to the same coal block. At present, 29 coal scam-related cases filed by the CBI remain pending before two special courts, while 27 have already been disposed of. Parallelly, the ED earlier this year had informed the Supreme Court that 45 complaints, equivalent to chargesheets under the PMLA, remain pending in connected proceedings.
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Business Standard
2 days ago
- Business
- Business Standard
Coal scam case: CBI court acquits former bureaucrats Gupta, Kropha, Samaria
A special Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) court on Friday acquitted former coal secretary HC Gupta, former joint secretary (coal) KS Kropha, and former coal allocation director KC Samaria in the high-profile 2012 coal scam case. Special Judge Sanjay Bansal convicted JAS Infrastructure Capital Ltd and its then director Manoj Kumar Jayaswal for cheating and criminal conspiracy in connection with the allocation of the Mahugarhi coal block in Jharkhand. Sentencing arguments are scheduled for 8 July 2025. CBI recounts progress and previous findings 'This is the 19th conviction in coal block allocation cases investigated by CBI,' a CBI spokesperson said. The agency initially filed its closure report in the matter on 20 November 2014. Previously, the court had framed charges against JAS Infrastructure Capital Pvt Ltd, Manoj Kumar Jayaswal, HC Gupta, KS Kropha, and KC Samaria. The CBI said that the promoters of JAS Infrastructure had made 'false and misleading claims' about the company's financial net worth, which formed the basis of the allocation. During the trial, 18 prosecution witnesses were examined. This case marks the 19th conviction out of the 54 coal block allocation cases probed by the CBI. Only half of these cases have been disposed of so far. Previous coal block cases involving the acquitted officials In 2017, Gupta, Kropha, and Samaria were convicted by another special CBI court for irregularities in the allocation of coal blocks in Madhya Pradesh to Kamal Sponge Steel & Power Ltd (KSSPL). They were granted bail on the same day. In April this year, Judge Bansal discharged Gupta and Kropha in a separate coal block allocation case related to Mednirai, also in Jharkhand, citing lack of evidence. The coal scam, also known as the Coalgate scandal, erupted in 2012 after the Comptroller and Auditor General of India (CAG) reported that the government had allocated coal blocks to private companies without transparent auctions. The report estimated a 'notional loss' of ₹1.86 lakh crore to the exchequer. The scandal triggered widespread political uproar and was a major factor in the Congress-led United Progressive Alliance (UPA) government's defeat in the 2014 general elections, which brought the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP)-led National Democratic Alliance (NDA) to power.
