A Delhi court has closed a coal block allocation case registered by the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) more than a decade ago against Hindalco Industries. The court discharged the company along with its former president and CEO S K Tamotia and former general manager (Corporate Affairs) PRS Mani. The order, dated May 30, was delivered by Special Judge (PC Act) Dheeraj Mor.
Court's Observations
The court held that prima facie, no case of criminal breach of trust, cheating, or criminal conspiracy was made out against the accused. It further noted that the CBI failed to establish any illegality by the accused. The court stated, “There is neither any evidence on record nor any justifiable reason to infer that they entered into criminal conspiracy to commit any illegal act.”
Background of the Case
The case pertained to the allocation of the Talabira-I coal block in Odisha to Hindalco in 1994. The FIR was filed in January 2015. The CBI alleged that Hindalco violated allocation conditions by using coal from the block in its existing 67.5 MW captive power plant at Hirakud, instead of limiting its use to proposed power projects.
The CBI also alleged that Hindalco extracted 4.80 million tonnes of coal beyond its estimated reserves of 15 million tonnes, thereby deriving undue gains. However, the court found that the restriction cited by the CBI was included in the original allocation letter but not in the mining lease executed between the Odisha government and Hindalco in 2003. The court held that the mining lease governed the legal rights and rejected the allegation of misleading representations.
Legal Implications
This ruling underscores the importance of the mining lease as the definitive document governing legal rights over coal blocks. The court emphasized that without evidence of criminal intent or conspiracy, the accused cannot be forced to stand trial. The discharge order brings closure to a decade-long legal proceeding for Hindalco and its former executives.
