SC to Hear ED Plea to Cancel Bail of Coal Scam Kingpin Anup Majee
SC to Hear ED Plea to Cancel Bail of Coal Scam Kingpin Anup Majee
SC agrees to hear ED's challenge to bail granted to Anup Majee in a ₹2,700 crore coal scam, amid claims of an absconding accountant and ongoing probe.
New Delhi — The Supreme Court agreed to hear the Enforcement Directorate's plea challenging the anticipatory bail granted to Anup Majee, the director of a private coal trading firm, in a case linked to alleged illegal coal excavation and pilferage worth about ₹2,700 crore. The court issued a notice and posted the matter for hearing in September.
The ED contends Majee was the principal figure or 'kingpin' in the alleged fraud, with investigations ongoing into the misappropriation of national resources. It highlighted that Majee's accountant is absconding and pointed to allegations of payoffs tied to the case.
Majee's counsel has argued that Majee has cooperated with investigators, appearing before the probe agency 13 times, and asserted that there was no justification for canceling the anticipatory bail granted earlier by the Delhi High Court in the money laundering case registered in 2020. The ED, however, pressed that the scale of the alleged wrongdoing and the protection previously granted could hinder the investigation.
The case centers on coal worth several thousand crores reportedly misappropriated from the Eastern Coalfield Limited leasehold area through illegal excavation and pilferage. The ED maintains that actions against Majee are necessary to ensure a fair and thorough inquiry into the alleged malpractices.
The court's forthcoming date will determine whether the bail protections can be lifted, allowing further steps in the money laundering and coal scam probe to proceed unimpeded.
