Many other issues to worry as PM, Manmohan to CBI
1 Oct 2015 6:34 AM IST
Former Prime Minister Manmohan Singh has told the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) that he had “many other issues to worry” being at the helm of the government and it was practically not possible for him to know and recollect every guideline on coal block allocation.
On the contrary, he contended that it was for the then Coal Secretary PC Parakh to highlight those guidelines if they had a bearing on the decisions to be taken as Minister of Coal, a portfolio he was holding during 2005 when the issue of allocation of coal block for HINDALCO was discussed.
He maintained that he went by the advice of Parakh on the letter written by HINDALCO chairman Kumar Mangalam Birla for allocation of the coal block. Parakh was the “<g data-gr-id="54">best qualified</g> person to give me advice” on that letter, he added.
In his statement recorded in January before the CBI, which was probing the alleged scam in allotting the coal block to HINDALCO, the former Prime Minister said he was not under pressure to accommodate the private firm in Odisha’s Talabira-II coal block allocation. He has been summoned as accused by a special court in this regard.
Singh said there was “no undue haste” in arriving at a decision on the issue and the final decision on the allocation of Talabira-II and III coal block was based on the examination and recommendation of Parakh, which was endorsed by senior officials at the PMO.
The Supreme Court had on April 1 stayed the trial court’s order summoning Singh and others, including Birla and Parakh, as accused in the case.
Singh was questioned by the CBI on January 19 this year, after the trial court had on December 16, 2014, directed the agency to examine him in the case.
“On being asked about the relevant guidelines framed by Ministry of Coal, which were applicable for the allocation of coal block in 2005, especially to such parties who have already been allocated adequate coal linkage for their projects, I state that I do not recollect the applicable guidelines,” Singh told the investigating officer.
“As the Prime Minister of the country, I have many other issues to worry about and it is not practically possible for me to know and recollect such guidelines. It is for the Secretary (Coal) to highlight those guidelines in his note/ report if such guidelines would have a bearing on the decision to be taken as Minister of Coal,” Singh said in a statement, which has been placed on record before the court by the CBI.
He added it was not “humanly possible” at his level to go through all previous files. Singh, however, clarified that there was no question of any pressure on him or any official to accommodate HINDALCO in the block. “....I would like to state that there was no direction or pressure placed on any official to condition them to put up a particular recommendation. I also state that there was no question of any influence or pressure on me on this issue of accommodating HINDALCO in Talabira-II coal block,” he said.
Singh told the CBI that being the Prime Minister, he could not be expected to divulge into earlier files and see what were the applicable guidelines on these issues and it was for the Coal Secretary to bring out such issues to his knowledge.
“I state that it was the job of the Secretary, MoC, to highlight all relevant facts and circumstances concerning the issue being put up to me for a decision. I cannot be expected to know all relevant facts connected to the issue. During 2005, PC Parakh was the Secretary, MoC,” he said.
The former PM said: “On being asked I repeat that in dealing with this case, I was not under any pressure nor did I exercise any undue pressure on officials of the PMO or Coal Ministry, other than my general instructions that significant representations received from the CMs of states and others be processed expeditiously.”
Singh also said that being the Prime Minister, he normally relied on “the notes/reports of the Secretary and the notes of the PMO officials to take <g data-gr-id="52">decision</g> on matters placed before me”.
On being asked about necessities to review the decision of the 25th screening committee to allocate Talabira-II coal block to Neyveli Lignite Corporation Ltd (NLC), he said it arose due to the representations of Birla, who had written two letters to Singh requesting him for allocation of block.
CBI pulled up over incomplete papers
New Delhi: A special court on Wednesday pulled up the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) for not filing complete set of documents with the final report in a coal scam case, in which former Jharkhand Chief Minister Madhu Koda, former Coal Secretary HC Gupta and seven other accused have been put on trial. “What is this happening? In every case, these issues crop up. Why do you not file the entire documents at one go with the charge-sheet,” said Special CBI Judge Bharat <g data-gr-id="106">Parashar.</g> The court’s observation came after senior public prosecutor VK Sharma said they would file an application to add names of some formal witnesses and also file some documents which were not placed on record earlier.
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