Coalscam: CBI lacks basics of probe, Director to look into it

New Delhi: Irked with the way CBI handled probe in a coal blocks allocation scam case, a Delhi court today said the agency’s officers lacked “basic skills of investigation” and ordered its Director Ranjit Sinha and all concerned DIGs to personally look into the matter failing which they would be held “responsible”.

Special CBI Judge Bharat Parashar also issued show cause notices to CBI inspector Rajbir Singh, investigating officer (IO) in a case in which a closure report was filed against Vikash Metals and Power Ltd, and its Superintendent of Police Nirbhay Kumar to explain the lacunae in their probe in the case.

“I deem it appropriate that a show cause notice by way of the present order be issued to both IO Inspector Rajbir Singh and SP Nirbhay Kumar to explain the aforesaid circumstances in which material documents and statement of witnesses as mentioned in the present order were withheld from this court,” the judge said.

“Their explanation will certainly enable this court to know as to whether these two officers lack basic skills of investigation which needs to be honed up or it was a deliberate act on their part,” the court said.

“The reply shall be filed in writing by tomorrow. Copy of this order shall also be sent to Director CBI and to all DIGs of CBI who are supervising investigation of coal block allocation cases. They shall personally look into all such matters lest in future also such kind of reports are filed in this court, for which they will be personally held responsible,” it said.

The court also observed that the agency was withholding documents from it for the reasons best known to them and even the statement of witnesses, recorded during the probe into the case, was not placed before it.

The court, in its order, noted that, “It was also found that during the course of investigation, IO also recorded statement of a number of persons under section 161 CrPC, such as that of Screening Committee members or number of other officers/ officials of Ministry of Coal and other departments but again for reasons best known to the IO he did not care to file them on record.”