CBI arrested retired GM of ECL in a coal smuggling case

New Delhi [India], July 15 (ANI): The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) on Friday arrested then General Manager (now retired) Pandaveswar Area of Eastern Coalfields Limited in an ongoing investigation of a case.
The arrested accused has been identified as Subhas Kumar Mukhopadhyay, then GM (now retired) Pandaveswar Area of Eastern Coalfields Limited.
CBI in a statement mentioned that it was alleged that the accused had obtained an undue advantage in the form of a regular cash amount as a bribe from the private person (named in FIR) and facilitated the misappropriation of coal from the ECL leasehold area and corresponding railway siding and thereby extended undue protection and patronage to the illegal coal syndicate being run by said, private person.
A case was registered on November 27, 2020, on the allegations that the public servants of ECL including security personnel, private person and unknown officials of CISF, Railway, other departments and unknown others entered into conspiracy during May 2020 and onwards and in pursuance of the said conspiracy, they fraudulently misappropriated coal from the coal reserve of leasehold areas under the dominion of ECL and also from the coal stock parked in the Railway sidings for sale and supply.
Earlier, CBI had also conducted searches at various places including in the States of West Bengal, Jharkhand, Bihar and UP etc. at the premises of accused persons.
The arrested accused will be produced on Saturday before the Special Court at Asansol. (ANI)