A Central Bureau of Investigation court in Delhi acquitted former coal secretary HC Gupta and senior bureaucrats KS Kropha and KC Samria on Wednesday in a case pertaining to alleged irregularities in the allocation of two coal blocks in Odisha, reported Bar and Bench.

Along with them, the court also acquitted Navabharat Power Private Limited, its managing director Y Harish Chandra Prasad and chairman P Trivikrama Prasad.

The case pertains to Navabharat Power Private Limited obtaining coal blocks in Odisha’s Rampia and Dip Side of Rampia, and Mandakini between 2006 and 2008 by allegedly misrepresenting its financial strength, net worth and land holdings.

Gupta, Kropha and Samria allegedly did not scrutinise the company’s applications, facilitating it in getting an undue advantage in obtaining the coal blocks.

On Wednesday, Special Judge Sanjay Bansal said that the Central Bureau of Investigation had failed to prove that Navabharat Power Private Limited made any misrepresentations, reported PTI.

“When the application has been found to be complete, when the applicant company NPPL has been found to be eligible company and when no misrepresentations were made by the company, no question arises for existence of any conspiracy,” said Bansal.

The charge of criminal breach of trust against Gupta, Kropha and Samria “cannot be said to have been made out”.

In July 2023, the three officials, along with former Rajya Sabha MP Vijay Darda, were convicted in a case of alleged irregularities in the allocation of a coal block in Chhattisgarh.

The case pertained to the allocation of the Fatehpur (East) coal block in Chhattisgarh to a company named JLD Yavatmal Energy Private Limited. The Central Bureau of Information alleged in its first information report that JLD Yavatmal Energy had wrongfully concealed the fact that its group companies had been allocated four coal blocks from 1999 to 2005.

At the time, Bansal convicted the accused persons under Indian Penal Code sections pertaining to criminal conspiracy, cheating and dishonestly inducing delivery of property, as well as under the Prevention of Corruption Act. All the accused persons were, however, acquitted of charges of criminal breach of trust by public servants.

In August 2023, the Delhi High Court granted bail to Gupta and Kropha in the case.