With the upcoming September 10 Supreme Court hearing on the coalgate breathing down the Government's neck and the Coal Ministry failing to locate the missing files, the Ministry now plans to lodge an FIR against "unknown persons" in the matter.
Sources privy to the developments told The Pioneer that the Coal Ministry would "soon be filing an FIR against unknown persons" as it has still not been able to find all the files sought by the CBI. The apex court's deadline for the missing files ends on September 15.
Though no specific date has been earmarked for filing the FIR by the Ministry, sources said that it may be done as early as Wednesday or latest by the weekend.
In fact, sources also confirmed that CBI may even "raid" the Coal Ministry premises (most probably after the SC hearing on Tuesday and once the apex court's 15 days deadline expires), to search for the missing files. Till now, the agency personnel have been frisking all the documents in the Ministry almost on a daily basis after seeking due permission from the ministry officials.
However, with the Coal Ministry having failed to locate the missing documents, the CBI officials may take over premises to conduct a thorough search under their direct supervision, sources added.
Despite having formed an inter-ministerial committee, which apart from Coal Ministry officials also has representatives from Steel and Power Ministries, the Sriprakash Jaiswal-led Ministry has failed to find all the specific files required by the CBI.
In fact, Jaiswal had last week in a review meeting of the inter-ministerial committee, had requested the afore-mentioned ministries to set up their own search groups to locate the missing files on an urgent basis and also work during the weekends in order to meet the apex court's deadline.
Around seven files, 173 applications and some other documents are said to be missing and these have been urgently sought by the CBI which is looking into the coal blocks allocation controversy.
Of these, one file had been located with the Steel Ministry and that had been sent to the Coal Ministry around 10 days back. However, there has been no word about the status of the remaining documents from the Coal Ministry.
A source in the know confirmed that locating all the missing files sought by the CBI seems difficult and therefore lodging the FIR has strongly emerged as a viable option with the Coal Ministry.
last week Jaiswal, when asked whether the Ministry would consider filing an FIR regarding the missing files, had said that "if any complaint is made with CBI, consider it as an FIR".
When asked to elaborate on the number of files missing, the Minister had only said that a list of missing files would be handed over to the CBI. With the ministry struggling to put up a list of missing documents and having been unable to find them, it may have to brace itself for a reprimand from the apex court as well as some tough measures by the investigating agency.
Slamming the Centre for not lodging FIRs on the missing files, the apex court had on August 29 given two weeks to the Government to make available the documents in question, a list of which has been given by the CBI to the Coal Ministry on September 2 and 4, 2013.
The apex court's deadline ends on September 15.