Zee Media Bureau
New Delhi: Former Jharkhand chief minister Madhu Koda was on Friday chargesheeted as accused by the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) in the coal blocks allocation scam case.
Koda was chargesheeted for offences of criminal conspiracy and cheating. Besides Koda, former Jharkhand chief secretary Ashok Kumar Basu and six others have also been booked by the apex probe agency.
The Court has fixed December 22 as the date for considering the CBI's chargesheet in the case.
Earlier, the CAG follow-up report pertaining to revenues of the Jharkhand government had stated that Madhu Koda, then chief minister of the state, had allegedly meddled with the recommendations of a screening committee for coal allocation in the state.
The CAG report had blamed both the Centre and Koda for changing the recommendations for allocation of six coal blocks in Jharkhand.
Koda seemingly had made changes in the list of companies recommended by the screening committee, which had gone through 210 applications to finally approve 10 of them. Koda, moreover, took out names of three companies, and added five new companies in the final list, which was approved by the Centre later. He did so without stating any reasons for the change.
The CAG had sought response from the Jharkhand Government about this in 2012 but to no avail.
Koda was questioned by the CBI officials this April in connection with their probe into coal blocks allocation scam.
Earlier, Koda was also questioned for his alleged role in allocation of Amarkonda Murgadangal coal block in Birbhum.
