CBI names Cong MP, kin in Coalgate

Nagpur's Dardas & Jayaswals Accused Of Conspiracy

New Delhi: The probe into the mega-billion 'Coalgate' scam moved into higher gear on Tuesday, with the Central Bureau of Investigation registering five FIRs into irregularities against five companies and several individuals, including a leading political family of Maharashtra. 
    Those named in the initial set of first information reports include Congress member of Rajya Sabha Vijay Jawaharlal Darda, his brother and education minister of Maharashtra Rajendra J Darda and his son Devendra. They have been accused of criminal conspiracy, suppression and misrepresentation of facts and violation of the Prevention of Corruption Act. 
    Apart from the Dardas, promoters of Nagpur-based Abhijeet group—Arvind Kumar Jayaswal, Manoj Jayaswal and Ramesh Jayaswal—have also been named in the FIRs. The group, which has seen spectacular growth in recent years, was one of the biggest beneficiaries of controversial coal block allocations. 
    The FIRs named three companies belonging to the Dardas—AMR Iron and Steel (Nagpur), JLD Yavatmal Energy (Nagpur) and JAS Infrastructure Capital. 
    The promoters of Navabharat Power, which has since become a subsidiary of Essar group, and Vini Iron and Steel Udyog, now controlled by an alleged aide of ex-Jharkhand CM Madhu Koda, figure in the remaining two FIRs. 
COALAVERI 
    Which firms are facing the heat? What are their political and bureaucratic connections? Who are the biggest beneficaries from irregular allocation of coal blocks? TOI digs deep into the scam to bring you the definitive story on Coalgate. P 11 
5 COS IN THE DOCK 
Companies charged by CBI | Nav Bharat Power (Hyderabad), Vini Iron and Steel Udyog (Kolkata), JLD Yavatmal Energy, Jas Infrastructure Capital and AMR Iron and Steel (all Nagpur) 
Allegations relate to misrepresentation, false claims in applications for coal blocks, selling stake in an irregular manner after allocation 
Unknown govt officials also charged with cheating, criminal conspiracy and under Prevention of Corruption Act 
Raids at 30 places in 11 cities, including Delhi, Mumbai, Patna, Kolkata, Nagpur, Dhanbad, Ranchi, Hyderabad and Raipur 
Three cos in the FIRs belong to Dardas (Cong's RS MP V J Darda, his brother and Maharashtra education minister R J Darda and his son Devendra) — AMR, JLD Yavatmal and JAS Infrastructure. Accused of applying for coal blocks by misrepresenting their net worth 
Many firms under lens have political links 
    Most of the companies against whom FIRs were filed by the CBI on Tuesday have either direct or indirect links with the politically powerful. JLD Yavatmal and JAS Infrastructure are associated with Congress MP Vijay Darda, who has denied using his influence to help these companies. Abhijeet group promoter Manoj Jayaswal is said to have hosted Congress and BJP leaders at family functions. P 11 
Case of an ex-babu turned director 
    When Nagpur-based Abhijeet group was allocated four coal blocks in Jharkhand in 2005, the state chief secretary was P P Sharma, a 1971 batch IAS officer. Moved out in 2006, he returned to the post in August 2007 under CM Madhu Koda. In 2008, the Abhijeet group got another coal block. Now retired, Sharma is a director in Abhijeet Power and Corporate Power. Coincidence? P 11 Dardas hid fact: CBI sources 
    The CBI is likely to file at least six more FIRs shortly, and enlist the cooperation of the Enforcement Directorate as part of a widening probe into the alleged swindle which surpasses the 2G scam in scale, and has jammed Parliament for over two weeks, placing corruption prominently on the national frontburner. 
    The CBI has also listed "unknown" government officials in the FIRs registered for cheating, criminal conspiracy and under many sections of the Prevention of Corruption Act as preliminary investigations showed that some officials involved in the allocation process may have colluded with private players. Tuesday saw CBI teams carrying out raids in Delhi NCR, Mumbai, Patna, Kolkata, Nagpur, Dhanbad, Ranchi, Hyderabad, Bhilai, Yavatmal and Raipur among others. They recovered several documents related to the cases and questioned officials including directors of the accused companies. 
    The FIR against Navabharat Power accuses its original promoters, P Trivikrama Prasad and Y Harish Chandra Prasad, of fabricating facts to secure Rampia and Dipside Rampia coal blocks. The Prasad siblings later sold the company to Essar Power. 
    The fifth FIR features Vini Iron and Steel Udyog Limited, with the CBI accusing Sanjeev Kumar Tulsyan, Prashant Tulsyan and five other directors as well as the company's chartered accountant of making the false claim that they were part of a consortium. According to the FIR, the directors misrepresented facts in order to appear financially viable. Significantly, one of the directors, Vaibhav Tulsyan, told TOI that they had sold the company to Vijay Joshi, aclose aide of Madhu Koda, five months before the block was allocated. 
    "If anyone has resorted to such wrongdoing, then not only his coal block allocation will be cancelled but he will be in jail. I can guarantee you," coal minister Sriprakash Jaiswal told reporters, as he shrugged aside suggestions of him being linked to the Jayaswals of Abhijeet group. 
    "The cases have been registered on allegations related to getting coal blocks allocated on the basis of misrepresentations and false claims in the applications, presentations and connivance/lack of due diligence on part of public servants. Promoters of some of these companies have allegedly sold their stakes in an irregular manner after allocation of coal blocks," said CBI spokesperson Dharini Mishra. 
    CBI sources claimed that the Dardas withheld the fact that they already had coal blocks in order to get new ones. According to Mishra, JAS Infrastructure, which was allocated Mahuagarhi coal block in Jharkhand, as well as JLD Yavatmal, which was allocated coal block in Fatehpur east in Chhattisgarh, misrepresented facts. The third Darda company under the scanner, AMR Iron and Steel which got Bander coal block in Chandrapur, Maharashtra, had also made wrong claims, she said. 
    The FIR against the original promoters of Navabharat Power said the accused persons misrepresented facts about other companies supporting their project in order to become eligible. Interestingly, after coal blocks were allocated to Navabharat Power, the company was taken over by Essar group's Essar Power in 2010 "at very high rates", the CBI said.

A CBI team at Defence Colony, New Delhi, on Tuesday