Coalgate: Court orders framing of charges against ex-coal secy, others

Former Coal Secretary H C Gupta, along with four others including two senior public servants, was on Wednesday ordered to be put on trial by a special court for alleged offences of cheating, forgery and criminal conspiracy relating to the purported irregularities in the allocation of a Jharkhand coal block to a private firm. 

Special CBI Judge Bharat Parashar ordered framing of charges against the accused, including senior public servants K S Kropha and K C Samria, and fixed December 22 for formally framing charges against them. Besides Gupta, Kropha and Samria, the court also directed to put on trial JAS Infrastructure Capital Pvt Ltd (JICPL) and its Director Manoj Kumar Jayaswal. 

The court said prima facie charges for alleged offences under sections 420 (cheating), 468 (forgery for purpose of cheating), 120-B (criminal conspiracy) of IPC and under relevant provisions of the Prevention of Corruption Act are made out against the accused.

The court had on July 31 last year issued summons to the accused after taking cognisance on CBI’s final report.