Coalgate: No accused or suspect let off, says CBI

New Delhi: A day ahead of filing a crucial affidavit in the Supreme Court on coal scam which has rocked the UPA government, CBI Director Ranjit Sinha on Sunday affirmed that the agency's probe into the matter was "clean and clear" and that no accused or suspect had been let off.

The apex court hearing the matter on May 8 may decide the political fate of Union Law Minister Ashwini Kumar who is embroiled in a controversy for having had a meeting with the CBI Director and others on March 5 during which he vetted the draft of the status report on the scam that was to be filed by the CBI on the next day.

At its last hearing on April 12, the court had asked Sinha to file an affidavit stating that the details of the report had not been shared with anyone as claimed by Additional Solicitor General Harin Raval before the court.

Sinha told reporters that no substantive changes were allowed to be made in the status report of the CBI filed on March six. "There has been no substantive changes allowed in the report. Both the reports are with the apex court and the Honorable court can ascertain itself. No accused or suspect has been let off and the findings of the report are not tampered with. It s a clean and clear probe," Sinha said on the eve of filing the affidavit in the Supreme Court.

In his earlier affidavit filed on April 26, Sinha had said, "I submit that the draft of the same (status report) was shared with Law Minister as desired by him prior to its submission before the Supreme Court. Besides the political executive, it was also shared with one joint secretary level officer each of Prime Minister's Office and Ministry of Coal as desired by them," the affidavit said.

According to reports, Raval was also present in the meeting which took place on March five. Sinha said the facts will speak for themselves "as there has been no attempt to mislead the court by the CBI. Let's refrain from making any judgment on the changes and leave it to the apex court which will take a view on that."

He said this was only the first status report in the matter and that in future no report on the progress of the coal scam probe would be shared with the government.