This is an archive article published on August 1, 2015
Rajya Sabha MP Vijay Darda, son summoned in coal case
The court said 'It has come on record that Vijay Darda wrote a number of letters to the PM (who was holding the coal portfolio) seeking allotment of Fatehpur (East) coal block in favour of M/s JLD'.
All of them have been directed to appear before the court on August 20.
Nearly eight months after a special court had directed the CBI to further probe the role of Rajya Sabha MP Vijay Darda in the allocation of Fatehpur coal block to M/s JLD Yavatmal Energy Private Ltd, the court on Friday summoned Vijay Darda, his son and a few others as accused in the case.
Special judge Bharat Parashar, taking cognizance of the CBI’s final report, listed offences under criminal conspiracy, cheating, criminal breach of trust and sections of the Prevention of Corruption act against Darda and his co-accused.
The court also summoned two senior public servants K S Kropha and K C Samria, the company JLD Yavatmal Energy Pvt Ltd, its director Manoj Kumar Jayaswal and Vijay Darda’s son Devendra Darda as accused in the case. All of them have been directed to appear before the court on August 20.
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“I proceed to take cognizance of the offence under Section 120B (criminal conspiracy) of IPC and that of offences under Sections 120B read with Section 409/420 (criminal breach of trust/cheating) of IPC and Section 13(1)(c)/13(1)(d) of PC Act against the accused persons — M/s JLD Yavatmal Energy Pvt Ltd, its director Manoj Kumar Jayaswal, Vijay Darda, Devendra Darda, H C Gupta, K S Kropha and K C Samria,” special CBI judge Bharat Parashar said.
On the alleged role of Darda, who was the chairman of Lokmat Group, the court had earlier said: “It has come on record that Vijay Darda wrote a number of letters to the PM (who was holding the coal portfolio) seeking allotment of Fatehpur (East) coal block in favour of M/s JLD. Vijay Darda at that time was a sitting Member of Parliament and he too had specifically claimed in his letters dated 18.06.07 and 06.08.07 addressed to the then PM that JLD was promoted, managed and controlled by Lokmat Group and Industrial Development Finance Company Ltd. Thus once again there was a clear misrepresentation by Darda on behalf of JLD to claim the allotment.”
On the role of Darda’s son Devendra, the court said that feedback form signed by him furnished wrong information with regard to JLD’s net worth.
Kaunain Sheriff M is an award-winning investigative journalist and the National Health Editor at The Indian Express. He is the author of Johnson & Johnson Files: The Indian Secrets of a Global Giant, an investigation into one of the world’s most powerful pharmaceutical companies.
With over a decade of experience, Kaunain brings deep expertise in three areas of investigative journalism: law, health, and data. He currently leads The Indian Express newsroom’s in-depth coverage of health.
His work has earned some of the most prestigious honours in journalism, including the Ramnath Goenka Award for Excellence in Journalism, the Society of Publishers in Asia (SOPA) Award, and the Mumbai Press Club’s Red Ink Award.
Kaunain has also collaborated on major global investigations. He was part of the Implant Files project with the International Consortium of Investigative Journalists (ICIJ), which exposed malpractices in the medical device industry across the world. He also contributed to an international investigation that uncovered how a Chinese big-data firm was monitoring thousands of prominent Indian individuals and institutions in real time.
Over the years, he has reported on several high-profile criminal trials, including the Hashimpura massacre, the 2G spectrum scam, and the coal block allocation case. Within The Indian Express, he has been honoured three times with the Indian Express Excellence Award for his investigations—on the anti-Sikh riots, the Vyapam exam scam, and the abuse of the National Security Act in Uttar Pradesh. ... Read More
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All of them have been directed to appear before the court on August 20.
