Coal scam: Delhi court discharges JSW Steel Ltd in corruption case

New Delhi: A Delhi court on Tuesday discharged JSW Steel Ltd (formerly Monnet Ispat) in a case related to alleged irregularities in the allocation and running of Gare Palma and Rajgamar Dipside coal blocks in Chhattisgarh.

Special judge Arun Bhardwaj passed the order, noting the adjudicating authority approved JSW’s application of taking over Monnet Ispat via a resolution under the Insolvency and Bankruptcy Code (IBC).

The judge passed the order on a discharge plea filed by the JSW on the ground of immunity granted under the law, submitting it has taken over Monnet Ispat under the code.

The judge said the adjudicating authority approved JSW’s application to take over.

JSW sought the discharge citing Section 32A, which says the liability of a corporate debtor for an offence committed under any law prior to the commencement of the Corporate Insolvency Resolution Process (CIRP) shall cease and the corporate debtor will not be prosecuted for such an offence from the date, the resolution plan was approved by the adjudicating authority.

"Approval of the resolution plan by the adjudicating authority shows the requirements of Section 32 A of IBC, 2016 were fulfilled. Therefore, the accused number 1 company stands discharged under Section 32 A of IBC, 2016,” the judge held.

Senior advocate Vikas Pahwa represented the company.

The case is one among the several cases stemming from the irregular allocation of coal blocks between 1993 and 2005. The CBI registered a preliminary enquiry on September 26, 2012 to look into the irregularities in the allocation of coal blocks during the period.