NEW DELHI: Former PM Manmohan Singh‘s desire to clear his name of a small blot, being summoned by a Delhi court as an accused in an alleged irregular coal block allocation case, remained unfulfilled. It would have helped him maintain his widely perceived squeaky clean antecedents.
Shortly after Supreme Court cancelled the irregular allotment of coal blocks during UPA govt led by Singh and directed trial court to proceed with the trial in several such cases under Prevention of Corruption Act, a Delhi court had in March 2015 summoned the ex-PM as an accused in the alleged irregular allotment of Talabira-II coal block to Hindalco.
Singh rushed to SC challenging the summoning order, fearing the ignominy of standing as an accused before the trial court. An SC bench led by V Gopala Gowda on April 1, 2015 stayed the summoning order much to the relief of the ex-PM and admitted his petition, which meant it required a detailed hearing of the plea.
The trial court had issued summons to Singh despite CBI filing a closure report in the alleged irregular allotment of Talabira-II coal block to Hindalco. The trial judge had said that closure of the case by CBI was unwarranted as there was prima facie evidence to summon Singh, who held the charge of coal ministry at the relevant time, and industrialist Kumar Mangalam Birla and others as accused.
Though SC had stayed the summoning order against Singh, a bench led by Justice Madan Lokur refused to stay the summoning of former minister of state for coal, Santosh Bagrodia, and said his petition would be heard along with that of Singh’s on Sept 2, 2015.
Alarmed by SC’s decision to expedite hearing on Singh’s appeal, senior advocate Kapil Sibal requested then CJI H L Dattu for an urgent clarification – that Singh’s petition should not be categorised as a coal scam related case as the main thrust of his challenge was to the constitutional validity of Section 13(1)(d)(iii) of PC Act.
CJI Dattu agreed with Sibal and ordered de-tagging of Singh’s petition from Bagrodia’s appeal.
The CJI Dattu-led bench said Singh’s petition would be listed forbearing only when his counsel seeks out of turn hearing on completion of pleadings – filing of response by CBI and Centre and a rejoinder by the ex-PM. Much after his retirement, Justice Dattu had confided with TOI that he could not entertain the eventuality of a “very clean ex-PM” facing trial as an accused in a case that had its genesis in his party’s political decisions.
The petition would now be disposed of as infructuous as the petitioner has passed away.
