Coal Minister Sriprakash Jaiswal accused the BJP of having a design in demanding en masse cancellation of coal blocks to actually benefit the private companies and further its political gains at the same time.
Asked about the allocation policy, he said, "It was a hundred per cent correct policy. There could not be a better policy than this."
On a day, when CBI registered five cases in connection with the alleged scam in allocation of coal mines and conducted searches in nearly 30 places across the country, Jaiswal indicated more action was in the offing.
"The CBI has conducted the raids...I am not the spokesperson of the CBI...We hope there will be more against whom the CBI will take action," Jaiswal, who was fielded by the Congress to counter the Opposition attack on the issue, said at the All India Congress Committee briefing.
He was replying to a question regarding the alleged link of Congress MP Vijay Darda with one company against which the CBI has registered a case.
"If any one has resorted to such wrongdoing, then not only his coal block allocation will be cancelled but he will be in jail. I can guarantee you," he said when asked about the BJP's charge that coal blocks have been allotted to all and sundry including those in hosiery and dairy business.
Asked why the coal blocks allocated long back are yet to produce coal, the minister remarked "mining coal is not like opening a restaurant" and involved lot of processes which take time".
The coal minister said if the licenes of coal blocks are cancelled without completing the process of verficiation and even before the report of IMG is out, the private companies could immediately move the court and get relief. "It is here that we apprehend that BJP is making this demand with a design."
Jaiswal said the CBI action against five such companies is an indication of the government's resolve and the "BJP should now be asked how do they respond to CBI'S action". He said action will be taken against the companies which have given wrong statistics that were verified by the state government and its officials.
"If the companies have not achieved the milestones, then the IMG is there. Whatevers steps IMG suggests, including de-allocation, cancellation of bank guarantee will be taken," he said.
The minister said 26 coal blocks have been de-allocated since the policy came into force in 1993.
Making a stout defence of Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, whose resignation is being sought by BJP, the coal ,inister said it was a "100 per cent correct policy and there could not be a better policy than this".
Singh was handling the coal ministry when the allocations had taken place. He said the PM, being an economist, knew coal was required for energy and steel and to boost infrastructure sector for faster growth.
Noting that most of these coal blocks were allotted on the recommendation of BJP governments in states, he said he feels the BJP is insisting on en masse cancellation of these coal blocks so that the coal companies can eventually get relief from courts while the Opposition party can also meet its political ends.
Hitting out at the BJP, he said while it is easy to demand de-allocation or in fact de-allocate the mines what is difficult is to face the consequences of such an action and hence the government wants to study it case by case.
Accusing the BJP of telling the country a lie on the issue of coal block allocation during NDA rule, Jaiswal said that contrary to its claim that none of the 32 allocations then was made for any private company, the fact is that 16 coal blocks were allotted to private hands.
