New Delhi, Nov 28: The CBI on Saturday carried out a massive search operation at 45 locations in four states after registering a case against alleged coal pilferer Anup Manjhi who was suspected to be acting in collusion with two general managers and three security personnel of Eastern Coalfields Ltd (ECL), officials said
. The searches were spread across West Bengal, Bihar, Jharkhand and Uttar Pradesh, they said.
The CBI registered the case on Friday against Manjhi, ECL General Managers Amit Kumar Dhar (of then Kunustoria area now Pandaveswar area) and Jayesh Chandra Rai (Kajor area) besides ECL Chief of Security Tanmay Das, Area Security Inspector, Kunustoria Dhananjay Rai and SSI and security in-charge Kajor area Debashish Mukherjee.
It is alleged that accused Anup Manjhi alias Lala is involved in the illegal mining and theft of coal from leasehold mines of ECL in Kunustoria and Kajora areas, they said. During the searches, the agency recovered Rs 40 lakh cash, documents, electronic devices and instruments of financial transactions, they said.
The Central Bureau of Investigation acted on information from “reliable sources” indicating illegal excavation and theft of coal in the leasehold area of ECL in “connivance” with the officials of ECL, CISF and Railways. The vigilance department of the ECL and its Task Force had also noticed illegal mining from May 2020 and onwards with the help of large excavation machines and vehicles for transportation that were seized by the team.
“Several instances of installation of illegal weighbridges in concrete form were also detected which confirms illegal coal mining and transportation from ECL areas in an organised manner at a very large scale.
“It is further revealed by the source that illegal mining is going on at the leasehold area of ECL behind Topsi village under Kunustoria Area and at Lachhipur Village under Kajora Area by the coal mafias in active connivance with officials of ECL and those of CISF,” the CBI alleged in its FIR. (PTI)
