New Delhi, March 27 A special court on Friday acquitted former MP Vijay Darda, his son Devendra Darda, and former coal secretary H C Gupta in a case related to coal block allocation, after finding no evidence to support the charges of cheating, criminal conspiracy, or misconduct.
This verdict brought an end to a high-profile legal battle that spanned over a decade. Special CBI Judge Sunena Sharma also acquitted Manoj Kumar Jayaswal and M/s AMR Iron and Steel Private Limited.
The CBI had registered more than 50 cases related to the alleged coal scam.
The current case originated from the first chargesheet filed by the federal agency in connection with coal block allocation in Bander, Maharashtra.
According to the prosecution, AMR Iron and Steel Private Limited, in conspiracy with Gupta, submitted false information in its application to the Union Ministry of Coal to secure allocation of the coal block.
It alleged that Darda, then a sitting Rajya Sabha MP from Maharashtra, wrote letters to the Prime Minister’s Office recommending allocation of the coal block to the company.
However, the court rejected CBI’s allegations. According to the evidence before it, the relevant information was already available to authorities during the allocation process, and no witness corroborated claims of inducement or deception, it said.
According to the court, the prosecution failed to prove the charges of cheating and criminal conspiracy. After examining the evidence and testimonies, the court found no evidence to support these allegations.
It emerged during the trial that there was no evidence to establish any false or dishonest intent in the company’s application or feedback form.
Records showed that all relevant information was already available with authorities during the allocation process, and no witness corroborated claims of inducement or deception, the judgement said.
The court also noted that the alleged Rs 24.6 crore transactions were not substantiated, and no link was established between the payments, the coal block allocation, or the letters written by Vijay Darda.
Additionally, there was no evidence to suggest that the letters influenced the allocation decision, it said.
The detailed judgement is awaited.