Taking the probe forward into the alleged illegal allotment of Odisha-based coal blocks to Hindalco, the CBI has begun questioning senior executives of the Aditya Birla Group and is all set to question former coal secretary PC Parakh next week.
Agency sources said some of the top executives of Hindalco and the Group were called to the agency headquarters here for questioning in connection with the “fraudulent” allocation of coal block. The sources said the questioning of the executives has been continuing for the last three days.
The sources, however, said no decision has been taken to summon Group chairman Kumarmangalam Birla, an accused in the case. Parakh is also a named accused in the case.CBI had registered a case naming Birla, Parakh and unknown officials of Hindalco and Coal Ministry last year under various sections pertaining to criminal conspiracy and corruption for alleged irregularities in the allocation of coal blocks about nine years back.
The decision to question the Group executives was taken after a senior PMO official TKA Nair was examined about the entire coal scam especially on Talabira-II block.Nair, who had replied to a CBI questionnaire, had denied any wrong doing in allocation of coal blocks to Hindalco.A decision on filing a final report (chargesheet) will be taken after completion of the ongoing probe.
CBI alleged that during 2005, these accused persons entered into a criminal conspiracy and the then public servant (Parakh) abused his position and showed undue favour to Hindalco in allocation of Talabira II and Talabira III coal blocks along with a Tamil Nadu-based PSU Neyveli lignite Corporation (NlC).
According to the FIR, the Screening Committee had allocated the Talabira II coal block to NlC but Parakh allegedly revered the decision to favour Hindalco, causing loss to the exchequer.The agency has also alleged that the allocation of the block to the private firm also delayed the approved power project of the public sector undertaking. The block allocated to Hindalco was earmarked for PSUs. Even after about nine years of allocation, the block is yet to be operationalised.
Parakh has been booked for criminal misconduct (Prevention of Corruption Act) and criminal conspiracy (Indian Penal Code). Parakh has attacked the CBI for naming him in the case saying if he was guilty then the Prime Minister should also have been named in the FIR.