Coal scam case: Former coal secretary HC Gupta sentenced to 3-year imprisonment
New Delhi, Dec 5 : A Delhi court Wednesday sentenced former coal secretary H C Gupta to 3-year imprisonment in a coal block allocation scam case which happened during the previous UPA regime at the Centre.
Two other bureaucrats -- K S Kropha and K C Samria -- were also awarded 3-year of jail term. The three bureaucrats were also fined Rs 50,000 each.
Special Judge Bharat Prasar sentenced other convicted persons Vikas Patni, MD of Vikash Metals and Power Limited (VMPL), and its authorised signatory Anand Mallick to 4 years jail term.
The court also imposed a fine of Rs 25 lakh on Patni and Rs 2 lakh on Mallick. A fine of Rs 1 lakh was imposed on the company.
The case pertains to irregularities in the allocation of Moira and Madhujore (North and South) coal blocks in West Bengal to VMPL. In September 2012, the CBI registered an FIR in the case.
The CBI had sought a maximum of seven years imprisonment for the five convicted persons and imposition of heavy fine on the private firm.
The offences for which they had been convicted entail a minimum punishment of one year in jail, going up to a maximum of seven years.
The court had on November 30 convicted Gupta, former joint secretary in Ministry of Coal Kropha and the then director (CA-I) in the ministry Samria.
It had also convicted the firm, Patni and Mallick.
Gupta, who was the Coal Secretary from December 31, 2005 to November 2008, has already been convicted before this in two other cases of coal block allocation in which he had been sentenced to jail for two and three years respectively. He is out on bail in both the cases.
Kropha, who was then the Joint Secretary, Ministry of coal, retired in December 2017 as the Chief Secretary of Meghalaya. He has also been convicted and sentenced to two years in another coal block allocation scam and has been on bail.
Samria then held the rank of Director in the Ministry of coal and is Joint Secretary in Ministry of Minority Affairs. He has already been convicted and sentenced to two years jail term in another case and was out on bail.
All the convicted persons were taken into judicial custody after pronouncement of the order on the direction of the court.
All have been held guilty for the offences under Prevention of Corruption Act and IPC, including cheating, criminal conspiracy and criminal misconduct.
Gupta has been accused in 12 cases of alleged irregularities in coal block allocation scam, prosecutors had said.
The CBI has filed charge sheets in connection with alleged irregularities in 40 cases of coal block allocations during the UPA-1 and UPA-2 regime.
On July 25, 2014, the Supreme Court had approved appointment of Additional Sessions Judge Parashar as special judge to exclusively deal with all coal scam cases.
Till now the special court has decided six such cases.
In the present case, the court had on August 19, 2016 framed charges, including cheating and criminal conspiracy against Gupta, the two public servants, the firm and its two officials. They all had pleaded not guilty and claimed trial. All the accused were out on bail.
The other two coal scam cases in which Gupta was earlier convicted related to Kamal Sponge Steel and Power Ltd (KSSPL) and Vini Iron and Steel Udyog Ltd(VISUL). Kropha and Samria were also convicted in KSSPL case.
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Passing out parade held at IMA Dehradun, 491 young officers join Indian Army
Dehradun(PTI): After undergoing rigorous training at the Indian Military Academy (IMA) in Dehradun, 491 cadets participated in a grand Passing Out Parade on Saturday and will now be commissioned as officers in the Indian Army.
The spectacular parade, held at the historic Drill Square in front of the academy's Chatwood Building, was reviewed by Army Chief General Upendra Dwivedi, who served as the reviewing officer.
Along with 491 Indian cadets, 34 foreign cadets from 14 friendly countries also participated in the Autumn Term 2025 Passing Out Parade.
A total of 525 officer cadets from the 157th Regular Course, 46th Technical Entry Scheme, 140th Technical Graduate Course, 55th Special Commissioned Officers Course, and Territorial Army Online Entrance Exam 2023 Course participated in the Passing Out Parade.
The 'Sword of Honour' and gold medal for securing first place during training was awarded to ACA Nishkal Dwivedi, the silver medal to BUO Badal Yadav for second place, and the bronze medal to SUO Kamaljeet Singh for third place.
The silver medal for securing first place in the 'Technical Graduate Course' was awarded to Officer Cadet Jadhav Sujit Sampat, and the silver medal for first place in the 'Technical Entry Scheme-46' was awarded to WCC Abhinav Mehrotra.
The silver medal for the 'Special Commission Officer Course' was given to Officer Cadet Sunil Kumar Chhetri.
Among the foreign cadets, the first place in merit was secured by JUO Mohammad Safin Ashraf from Bangladesh. The Army Chief's Banner for overall best performance in the Autumn Term was awarded to Imphal Company.
As the parade concluded, helicopters showered flowers on the newly commissioned officers from the sky.
On this occasion, General Dwivedi congratulated the new officers in his address for successfully completing their training. He praised the young officers for their high level of discipline, leadership qualities, and endurance, and urged them to uphold the glorious traditions of the Indian Army and serve the nation with loyalty, commitment, and honour.
General Dwivedi said that joining the army marks the beginning of a lifelong duty and selfless service.
The parents and guardians of the newly commissioned officers were also present during the passing out parade.
