CBI is ready to file an appeal against a Delhi High Court order quashing charges framed against Prakash Industries Ltd (PIL) and its director in a coal blocks allocation scam case, with the Law Ministry giving it the go ahead to do so.
Senior public prosecutor V K Sharma informed the special court that necessary permission has been granted to it by the authority to file a special leave petition (SLP) in Supreme Court against the high court's September 5, 2014 order.
"Senior PP V K Sharma submits that necessary permission from the competent authority for filing SLP in the present matter before Supreme Court has been received and the same is likely to be filed within a week's time," Special CBI Judge Bharat Parashar noted in his recent order.
The court has now fixed the case for further proceedings on March 26.
CBI had earlier told the court that it was waiting for the nod of the Law Ministry to file an appeal in the case.
The high court had quashed charges of cheating, forgery and criminal conspiracy framed by the trial court against PIL and its Director (Corporate Affairs) A K Chaturvedi.
The other two accused in the case -- Goutam Kumar Basak and Soumen Chatterjee -- have sought alteration of charges framed against them earlier in view of the high court order. The plea is pending before the court.
Executive Secretary Basak and Manager (F&A) Chatterjee of Steel Ministry's Joint Plant Committee had told the court that it should alter the charges framed against them as the high court had quashed charges against PIL and Chaturvedi.
Basak and Chatterjee were earlier put on trial on the charges of cheating, forgery and other offences under IPC and under provisions of the Prevention of Corruption Act for allegedly giving a misleading report regarding the production capacity of PIL.
