The S P Kurdukar commission of enquiry set up by the Maharashtra government to probe the Dabhol fiasco has despatched notices to 17 bureaucrats which reads like a who-is-who of the power sector.
The commission had sought signed statements asking to them to explain their role in the Enron deal but is yet to receive a single one.
The list of names includes Pradeep Baijal (disinvestment secretary), Asoke Basak (additional chief secretary, Maharashtra), shipping secretary M P Pinto, former Maharashtra State Electricity Board chairman Vinay Bansal.
The others to whom notices have been served include senior IL&FS official A R Harane, Central Electricity Authority (CEA) chairman VVRK Rao; former Comptroller and Auditor General of India B K Shinglu; L P Sonkar, joint advisor, power, Planning Commission, S Sethu Vedantha, former chief engineer of CEA, Y P Gambhir, retired CEA chairman, R V Mathur, former CEA secretary, Ajit Nimbalkar, special secretary, U K Upadhyaya, N Raghunathan and another retired CEA chairman, MI Beg.
"The notices have been despatched and two weeks' time have been given to these bureaucrats to file their reply. Most of them have not responded. Others have sought additional time," said sources in the commission.
Besides, even the Union ministry of power, CEA, Maharashtra government, and MSEB, who have been served notices, are yet to respond.
The missives were sent across to various bureaucrats serving and retired, who at some point of time were part of the decision-making process directly or indirectly.
He letter issued to the bureaucrats says, "...From the material available with the commission so far it appears that your in your capacity as ....... might be connected, concerned with the decision making process, negotiations and agreements with Enron/Dabhol Power Company."
The letter further directs: "In the interest of justice you better file your statement in order to advance the cause of the commission within two weeks."
Of the individuals whose written statements the Kurdukar commission has sought, only three, namely N Raghunathan and Ajit Nimbalkar, have responded seeking more time to file their statements, while N K Singh has similarly sought time while also seeking relevant copies of the commissions notifications etc.
Apart from these 17 individuals (bureaucrats), another eight would be served similar notices by the enquiry commission in the coming days. The delay in serving them these missives is attributed by the commission to the unavailability of their current addresses and designations (if not retired already).
Letters are being despatched to EAS Sarma (former secretary, Union ministry of power), A N Disparker (former MSEB chairman), S Rajagopal (former cabinet secretary, Union ministry of power), R Mathur (former financial advisor to MSEB), and Montek Singh Aluwalia (former secretary, Union finance ministry).
Meanwhile, the Peasants and Workers Party (PWP), five MLAs belonging to which recently withdrew their support to the Democratic Front (DF) government in Maharashtra, have submitted several hundred pages of its statements on the DPC project, emphasising their consistent opposition to the same.
DPC-opponents like the Enron Virodhi Andolan, activists Pradyumna Kaul and SR Paranjpe have also filed their respective statements on the project, on their own accord.
