Coal news and updates

Dasari grilled by ED on allocation of 4 coal blocks

Dasari Narayana Rao was on Monday questioned by the Enforcement Directorate (ED) for his alleged role in the coal scam during his tenure as Union Coal Minister during the Congress-led UPA regime.

The ED questioned him over a suspected payoff for alleged personal favours extended by Rao by allocating coal blocks to Jindal group in Jharkhand in 2008, while Rao was the MoS, Coal. He served as Minister between 2004 and 2008.

Earlier in May, the ED had slapped money laundering charges on the former Minister along with Congress MP Naveen Jindal in connection with its probe in the coal block allocation case. After being summoned by ED on November 26, Rao sought time over some personal issues and appeared before the agency on Monday.

Sources said the ED grilled Rao on the allocation of four coal blocks -- Jitpur, Amarkonda, Murgadangal and Rohne -- which were awarded to Jindal Power and Steel on February 20, 2007, January 17, 2008 (two blocks) and June 5, 2008. Both Rao and Jindal had consistently denied any wrongdoing. Rao’s statement on the issue was recorded by the ED.

It may be recalled the CBI had questioned Rao in June 2013 in Hyderabad in connection with the coal scam case.  The FIR filed against both Rao and Jindal alleged that Jindal’s companies clinched illegal deals in a mutual and deliberate attempt to get a coal block.

The agency, according to sources, has framed the charges after it found multi-layered transactions between the firms owned by Jindal to Rao’s firms based in Hyderabad and “illegal money” was routed for alleged favours given for the allocation of coal firms to Jindal in Jharkhand in 2008 by Rao.  The probe by both the agencies in this case is being monitored by the Supreme Court.

Source: The New Indian Express