The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) continues to target the United Progressive Alliance (UPA) government on the coalgate, with one of their MPs seeking a CBI probe into the allotment of two coal blocks in Odisha to a consortium led by Jindal Steel and Power and the Strategic Energy Systems Ltd way back in 2008.
“I am writing to bring to your notice certain great process irregularities in the allotment of North of Arkhapal and Ramchandani Promotional Coal Blocks respectively,” BJP member of Parliament Dharmendra Pradhan said in his letter to CBI director Ranjit Sinha on Saturday.
Pradhan joined his party colleagues Hansraj Gangaram Ahir and Prakash Javadekar who were instrumental in getting a CBI inquiry done to probe the coalgate. On their letter, the Central Vigilance Commission had asked the CBI to probe the allotment scam which has come as a major embarrassment for the UPA government which is facing a slew of corruption charges.
The CBI has already filed an FIR against Congress MP Naveen Jindal and others on a charge that his firm JSPL had misrepresented facts to get coal blocks in Jharkhand in 2007 in connivance with former minister of state for coal Dasari Narayan Rao.
Pradhan, who belongs to Odisha, raised shortcomings ignored to allot coal blocks to Jindal affiliated consortium. The coal to liquid project was envisaged as 3.5 million tonne oil and oil products scheme with an investment between $ 6 billion and $ 8 billion and the applicant’s worth was capped at Rs 4,000 crore in order to qualify for the tender, the letter states.
The Rajya Sabha MP said that as per their own website the worth of JSPL was mere Rs 3,772 crore on March 31, 2008.
“The bid evaluation report of the Planning Commission clearly indicates that the allotment was made to JSPL, which did not have the required networth as on this date. Therefore, the basic criteria for award were not fulfilled.
The allotment is clearly a result of criminal conspiracy and should be cancelled,” he demanded in his letter to the CBI director.