V. NARADA
Ranchi, Feb 7: The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) is understood to be planning to prosecute the senior IAS officer Arun Kumar Singh along with the then Mines Director Inderdeo Paswan besides three other private persons in an illegal iron ore export case involving Ranchi-based steel wire rope manufacturer Usha Martin.
Highly placed sources told Lagatar24.com that the CBI has requested the Jharkhand government to give its comment to the Department of Personnel and Training (DOPT) of the Central Government when or if the opinion is sought. Singh, a 1988 batch IAS officer, is Development Commissioner in Jharkhand.
“To my knowledge the CBI has requested the state government to give its comment to the DOPT if any communication and consent is made and sought about the said officer in this mining case,” highly placed sources said.
“Under the Prevention of Corruption Act the DOPT initiates the process to prosecute an IAS officer. As far as Inderdeo Paswan is concerned he moved to the Bihar cadre after serving in Jharkhand for a while,” said the sources. The CBI sent the request to the office of Jharkhand Chief Secretary about two weeks back.
Besides these two officials, the CBI also wants to prosecute three top officials of Usha Martin.
The case in brief is that the said company was favoured in granting an iron ore mine in 2005 at Ghatkuri in West Singhbhum district over five other applications.
Arun Kumar Singh was then the secretary of the Mines department. An FIR was lodged in September 2016 at Delhi unit of the CBI no. 220/2016 under sections dealing with alleged criminal conspiracy, cheating and provisions of Prevention of Corruption Act against promoters of Usha Martin, Director Mines, Jharkhand Government, Inderdeo Paswan and others.
The state government had allegedly favoured Usha Martin in its recommendation to the Centre for the allotment of the Vijaya II iron ore mines since the company had allegedly promised that it would use the ore in its steel plant in Adityapur.
The undertaking by the company led the state government to recommend it as a special case for captive consumption. The CBI has alleged that the company later backtracked from the undertaking taking advantage of the fact that the special reason was not specifically mentioned in the cabinet note. The company exported a huge quantity of iron ore mines instead of using them in its steel plant.
