Congress MP and businessman Naveen Jindal will soon be questioned by the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) for his alleged role in the
coal blocks allocation scam, even as the agency made "some seizures" from his residence in the Capital on Friday.
CBI sleuths searched a cupboard at his 6-Prithviraj Road residence soon after the Kurukshetra MP returned from abroad early Friday, sources said. The agency could not search the locked cupboard earlier as he was away.
Jindal was to return by the end of this month, but it was conveyed to him that he was needed in India immediately to join the ongoing investigation in the coal scam.
"We had served him a notice to return early... He will be questioned shortly,"a CBI officer said. "We searched the locked cupboard and have made some seizures," the officer added.
CBI sources said a
notice had been issued to his companies seeking some important documents related to the coal block allocations.
The agency registered a case on June 11, naming former Minister of State for Coal
Dasari Narayan Rao and Jindal as accused in the case.
MAIL TODAY earlier reported that Rao had favoured the Jindal group, bypassing the then Power Minister Sushilkumar Shinde's recommendation that four blocks in Jharkhand should be shared between Bhushan Energy and Jindal Power & Steel equally.
Rao, however, allocated all
four coal blocks to Jindal.
During Rao's tenure as coal minister (2004-2006 and 2006-2008), Jindal's firm was allocated five coal blocks to the tune of 1044.86 MMT.
It is alleged in the FIR that in December 2008, an investment worth Rs 2.25 crore was made by one of the companies owned by Jindals to Hyderabad-based Saubhagya Media limited owned by Rao. The CBI has also alleged that shares of Rao's company worth Rs 28 each in the stock market in 2008 were purchased for Rs 100 by one of Jindal's firms, New Delhi Exim.
These transactions took place within a year of Jindal getting the coal blocks.
"We will question both of them soon. We have been scrutinising the documents supplied by both the companies,"said a CBI officer.
The agency has already questioned Rao in connection with the scam but he has not been grilled after being named as an accused.
Sources said the money trail has been established but this is just the tip of the iceberg.
"We have been able to establish the trail of Rs 2.25 crore. It is suspected that more such transactions took place and the amount paid could be much more,"said the officer.
The two companies owned by Jindal are Jindal Steel and Power Limited with Naveen Jindal as its director and Gagan Sponge Iron Private Limited where Jindal group has a share.
CBI has already questioned ex-MoS (coal) Dasari Narayan Rao
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