The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI), which revealed that it shared its report on the scandal with government officials before submitting it to the Supreme Court last year, has now released in the affidavit the details of the changes made to the draft and the names of those involved.
The CBI said the report was shared with Attorney General GE Vahanvati, former additional solicitor general Harin Raval, officials in the coal ministry and the PMO, and the law minister.
The Indian Express reported that CBI Director Ranjit Sinha cited in his affidavit two "significant" changes made in the report after the Law Minister's intervention but neither of the changes made have "altered the central theme of the report, nor shifted the focus of inquiries or investigations in any manner”
The affidavit stated that "no names of suspects or accused were removed... no accused or suspects were let off in the process" and there was "no deletion of any evidence" against anyone.
The top court said late last month that the decision by the CBI to share the investigation report with the government was “not ordinary” and it would seek to free the federal investigation body from political interference.
“The investigation has to be independent without any extraneous influence,” the three-judge bench said in an April 29 hearing.
“The very foundation of the investigating process is shaken by political interference.”
The bench, headed by Justice RM Lodha, called the breach “a vital erosion of trust”
The court hearing has severely disrupted parliament while Prime Minister Manmohan Singh is now being called on to step down.
The scandal was exposed when, in March 2012, a leaked government audit suggested state miner Coal India had squandered more than $US200 billion by allocating coal blocks instead of allowing competitive bidding.
The report, which the Times of India called “mind-boggling”, ruffled reformers within the Indian coal industry, led to the opening of public coal block auctioning and recently resulted in direct corruption accusations against the country’s chief of government.
The CBI report was an investigation into the matter.
The bench said it would remain engaged with the case and would determine who tampered with the status report and what benefit was gained from it.