Coal Scam
Supreme Court gives clean chit to Manmohan Singh in coal block scam case two years after death, accepts CBI closure report
New Delhi/IBNS: The Supreme Court has given a clean chit to former Prime Minister Dr. Manmohan Singh in the coal block allocation scam case, nearly two years after his death, according to media reports.
The top court accepted the closure reports filed by the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI), bringing an end to the proceedings against the former prime minister.
Supreme Court Quashes Summoning Order
A special judge of the Supreme Court quashed the summoning order in the case pertaining to the alleged irregular allocation of the Talabira-II coal block in Odisha to Hindalco Industries during the Congress-led UPA government.
Dr. Singh was also holding the additional charge of the Coal Ministry at the time the allocation was made.
Background of the Case
A trial court had summoned Dr. Manmohan Singh as an accused in the case in 2015.
He challenged the summons before higher courts.
In 2020, the CBI informed the Delhi court that it had found no prosecutable evidence against Dr. Singh and sought permission to withdraw the case against him.
The Supreme Court has now accepted the closure reports, effectively ending the case against the former prime minister.
Political Significance of Coalgate
The coal block allocation controversy, popularly known as Coalgate, emerged as one of the biggest corruption issues faced by the UPA-II government.
The BJP repeatedly raised the issue in Parliament and made it a major campaign plank during the 2014 Lok Sabha elections, alongside the 2G spectrum and Commonwealth Games controversies.
The controversy significantly shaped the political narrative ahead of the 2014 general election.
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