Coal Scam: Spl court convicts Maharashtra-based company, three of its former office bearers

New Delhi [India]: A Special Court on Friday convicted a Maharashtra-based company and three of its former office bearers for cheating, forgery and criminal conspiracy in a case related to the allocation of Marki Mangli-Il, Ill and IV coal blocks in Yavatmal district, Maharashtra, to the company.

Special Judge Sanjay Bansal convicted them under Section 120B, read with sections 417, 420, 468 and 471 IPC, and fixed January 11 and January 12, 2024, for the arguments on the point of the sentence.

The court on Friday convicted Topworth Urja and Metals Ltd. (formerly known as Virangana Steels Ltd.).
Anand Nandkishore Sarda, the then Director of Virangana Steels Ltd (Now Topworth Urja and Metals Ltd.), Manoj Maheshwari, the former Director and CEO of Virangana Steels Ltd. (Now Topworth Urja and Metals Ltd.) and Anil Kumar Saxena, the then President of Virangana Steels Ltd. (Now Topworth Urja and Metals Ltd.)

The accused persons were the office bearers of the company at the time the coal block was allocated to Topworth Urja and Metals Ltd, earlier known as Virangana Steels Ltd, and its former officer bearers, Anil Kumar Saxena, Manoj Maheshwari and Anand Nand Kishore Sarda, were put on trial for offences punishable under the Indian Penal Code.

During final arguments, it was submitted by Sanjay Kumar, Additional Legal Advisor of CBI, that the prosecution has successfully proved its case against the accused persons beyond reasonable doubt and therefore they may be convicted and punished as per law.

The coal scam prosecution team was constituted by the Supreme Court of India in its order dated September 1, 2014.

In 2020, the court discharged three people in connection with the coal block allocation case concerning Topworth Urja and Metals Limited (TUML). The Court had discharged TUML Director Surendra Lodha, its President Anil Nevatia, and Vice President SK Mittra in a coal block allocation case concerning Topworth Urja and Metals Limited (TUML).

However, the Court had framed charges against the company TUML and three others–Anil Kumar Saxena, Manoj Maheshwari and Anand Nand Kishore Sarda–for their alleged role in the execution of mining leases pertaining to Marki-Mangli II, III and IV coal blocks in Yavatmal District, Maharashtra.

TUML was formerly known as Virangana Steels Ltd. According to the prosecution, Virangana Steels Ltd., along with its officers and directors, conspired to cheat the Ministry of Coal (MoC) to procure the allocation of captive coal mining blocks for its proposed 3 LTPA sponge iron plant, Captive Power Plant (CPP) and Steel Melt Shop and even succeeded in obtaining an allocation of three captive coal blocks, said the CBI.