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"": Delhi Court Delivers Clean Chit to All in 12-Year-Old Bander Coal Scam Saga
In a stinging rebuke to the
's decade-long probe, Special Judge (PC Act) Sunena Sharma at
acquitted all five accused in the high-profile Bander Coal Block allocation case on
. Dismissing charges of cheating, criminal conspiracy, and corruption under
and
, the court ruled there was
"
"
to sustain the prosecution's narrative.
Former Rajya Sabha MP Vijay Darda, his son Devendra Darda, ex-Coal Secretary HC Gupta, AMR Iron & Steel Pvt Ltd, and its director Manoj Kumar Jayaswal walked free after a trial spanning chargesheets from , , and . The verdict underscores the fragility of inferences drawn from ambiguous application forms and unproven links in complex financial trails.
From Tip-Off to Marathon Trial: The Twists in Bander Block Probe
The case stemmed from a reference to , flagging alleged irregularities in captive coal block allocations during . RC No. 219//E/0009 targeted the Bander block in Maharashtra, allocated jointly to AMR, Century Textiles, and JK Cement in for AMR's proposed 0.3 MTPA sponge iron plant at Tarsi, Nagpur.
alleged AMR misrepresented prior group allocations in its application, inflated net worth via a fake SPV with Lokmat and IL&FS in feedback/presentation, and Devendra Darda falsely signed as AMR director. Vijay Darda's letters to were branded influence-peddling, with Rs 24.60 crore "routed" as via Kolkata shell firms to Darda-linked ABPL, funneled to Jayaswal's JAS Infrastructure.
Gupta, as Screening Committee chair, faced corruption charges for allegedly favoring AMR despite "abandonment" of its Tarsi plant. Public servants like ex-MoS Coal Santosh Bagrodia and officer LS Janoti were discharged in ; charges stuck against the rest post- framing.
Key question: Did misrepresentations deceive the committee into wrongful allocation, greased by bribes?
's Web of Misrepresentation and Bribes Unravels Under Scrutiny
leaned on PW-1 Harshad Pophali's claim that Manoj Jayaswal instructed the "No" to prior group allocations (despite Jayaswal Neco/Abhijeet blocks). Feedback form allegedly lied on SPV status, Rs 1,821 crore net worth (vs AMR's Rs 1.96 crore), 370-acre MIDC land (unallotted), Wardha River water tie-up (conditional), and plant shift to 2 MTPA Yavatmal.
Vijay Darda's letters touted Lokmat promotion and Yavatmal jobs; Rs 24.60 crore trail—from Abhijeet firms through 11 Kolkata entities to ABPL, then Jayaswal's JAS—was "smoking gun" , tied to IFS clause on 26% "free equity" for coal helpers.
Gupta allegedly ignored "abandoned" Tarsi plant, misled on state ministry nods. invoked precedents like (deception via ministry) and (recommendation as "valuable thing").
Defence Demolishes: Ambiguity, No Inducement, No Nexus
Defence countered: "Group/associate" undefined in 2007—no in "No" response; MoA/AoAs disclosed ties. Feedback/presentation ignored as Tarsi application stood; no bar on multiple EUPs sans separate apps. Yavatmal feedback rightly sidelined.
Darda letters routine MP constituency pleas—never reached committee, mismatched actual allocation (joint 0.3 MTPA Tarsi). Rs 24.60 crore legit JAS investment per shareholders' pact; 26% AMR equity worth Rs 50 lakh max, not crores—disproportionate for bribe. DWs like Shivraj Singh affirmed unanimous committee consensus; no Gupta veto.
Gupta's note pre-retirement routine; allocation post his exit. No evidence; screening recs non-binding sans minister nod.
Court shredded : Ambiguous query no cheating; feedback irrelevant/non-inducing; letters inconsequential; transactions unlinked bribe.
" Miserably Failed": Court's Razor-Sharp Dissection of Flawed Probe
Judge Sharma eviscerated
's chain: No deception/inducement proved—screening eyed Tarsi app alone, per guidelines barring unapplied EUPs.
"
"
; group term "loose," prior allocations immaterial (past JV precedents).
Darda letters "inconsequential"—contrary to rec (joint Tarsi vs exclusive Yavatmal). Rs 24.60 crore nexus "whimsical"—timeline gap (2.5 yrs post-rec), disproportion (50x equity value), legit per pact. IFS "outsider" unidentified; unsigned Shaw letters unproved.
Gupta cleared: Unanimous rec public-interest policy (ECC/ directive); no "valuable thing" sans final letter (post-retirement). Pre- irrelevant—acts lawful.
Key precedents: (misrep non-inducing no cheating); (recs non-binding).
"The prosecution has miserably failed to prove... , direct or indirect, to establish a criminal conspiracy."
"Mere dishonest misrepresentation is not sufficient... unless material and induced deceived party."
Verdict Echoes Clean Slates: Ripple Effects on Coal Probes
All acquitted—bonds under . Echoes prior discharges (Bagrodia/Janoti); Gupta "honourably" cleared. Blow to 's coal scam dragnet—stresses proof over inference in allocation ambiguities. Future probes must nail inducement/, not presume from docs.
As other sources note, "oldest pending coal case" ends sans convictions, spotlighting probe pitfalls amid 200+ blocks scrutiny.
