Odisha Oppn seeks Patnaik's prosecution in coal scam

A CBI court’s decision to summon former prime minister Manmohan Singh, industrialist Kumar Mangalam Birla and former coal secretary P C Parakh as accused in the coalgate trial is already having its impact in Odisha with the opposition trying to corner Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik on the issue.

According to them, Patnaik should also be questioned and prosecuted as it was he who had strongly recommended to the then prime minister to allot the Talabira II coal block in the state to Birla’s Hindalco in 2005. Singh, Birla and Parakh have been charged in connection with this particular coal block allocation.

“The CBI seems to have completely forgotten Patnaik’s role in the entire episode. Singh who was then the prime minister had already said that he had taken the decision to allot the controversial coal block in Odisha on the recommendation of the chief minister.

Was it not the duty of the CBI to question Patnaik?” senior Congress legislator and the leader of the opposition in the Assembly, Narasingha Mishra, said while reacting to the developments in New Delhi.

The ruling BJD expectedly defended Patnaik saying that the chief minister had not done anything wrong and whatever he did was in the interest of the state and its people. “The final decision to allot the coal block was taken by the Centre.

The chief minister had only recommended it. Therefore, who took the final decision should be held responsible for any wrong doing,” said Amar Satpathy, spokesman of the ruling regional outfit. Patnaik said the court had not summoned him either as an accused or an witness.

“The court order is quite clear. It has nothing to do with us,” he told reporters.