Supreme Court Closes Proceedings Against Former PM Dr. Manmohan Singh in Coal Block Allocation Scam

The Supreme Court today closed the criminal proceedings initiated against former Prime Minister and Congress leader Dr. Manmohan Singh in the coal block allocation scam case

A CJI Surya Kant led bench allowed the appeal filed by the late leader in 2015 and set aside the trial court's order rejecting the CBI's closure reports and summoning him to face trial.

The bench also comprising Justices Joymalya Bagchi and V Mohana noted that there were no cogent reasons to discard the CBI's closure reports or take cognisance against him

"We have gone through both the closure reports filed by the CBI with the able assistance of learned senior counsel for the parties. Having regard to the parameters consistently laid down by this Court in the matter of acceptance or rejection of an investigation report filed by an investigating agency, we are satisfied that there were no cogent reasons to set aside the closure reports filed by the CBI and take cognisance. Consequently, we allow the appeal and set aside the impugned judgment dated 11 March 2015 and the consequential order summoning the appellant to face trial," the bench noted.

A Delhi court had in March 2015 summoned the former Prime Minister as an accused in the alleged irregular allotment of Talabira II coal block to Hindalco. Singh challenged the summoning order, which a bench led by V Gopala Gowda on April 1, 2015 had stayed.

The trial court had issued summons to Singh despite CBI filing a closure report in the alleged irregular allotment of Talabira-II coal block to Hindalco. The trial judge had said that closure of the case by CBI was unwarranted as there was prima facie evidence to summon Singh, who held the charge of coal ministry at the relevant time.

Earlier this year, the Supreme Court had appointed a new judge, Sunaina Sharma, to hear the trials in the coal scam cases being probed by the Central Bureau of Investigation. A CJI Surya Kant led bench considered the names of three judicial officers submitted by the Delhi High Court to replace Special CBI Judge Sanjay.

Court was told by Senior Advocate R. S. Cheema, that the incumbent Judge Bansal was allowed last year to continue from April 8, 2025, for a period of six months and eight months had passed since then.

What is the Coal Block Allocation Scam?

The Coal Block Allocation Scam, popularly known as the "Coalgate" scam, refers to the alleged irregular allocation of coal blocks by the Central Government between 2004 and 2009. Instead of conducting competitive auctions, many coal blocks were allotted through a screening committee process, raising concerns about transparency and fairness.

In 2012, the Comptroller and Auditor General (CAG) estimated that the non-auction allocation of coal blocks could have resulted in a notional loss of about ₹1.86 lakh crore to the public exchequer. The findings triggered widespread political controversy and multiple investigations by the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI).

In a landmark judgment in 2014, the Supreme Court of India held that the allocation process was arbitrary and illegal, cancelling 214 of the 218 coal block allocations made since 1993. The Court observed that the process lacked transparency and violated principles of fairness.

Following the verdict, Parliament enacted the Coal Mines (Special Provisions) Act, 2015, paving the way for transparent allocation of coal blocks through auctions and competitive bidding.

Case Title: DR. MANMOHAN SINGH Vs CENTRAL BUREAU OF INVESTIGATION

Bench: CJI Kant, Justice Bagchi and Justice Mohana

Hearing Date: July 29, 2026