Chhattisgarh Coal Scam: Court Hearing Today on Suryakant Tripathi’s Jail Shift

The special court will convene today to consider the jail transfer of Suryakant Tripathi, an individual implicated in the Chhattisgarh coal levy scandal. Jail authorities have requested his relocation to Ambikapur jail, alleging Tripathi’s unruly conduct and non-cooperation with prison staff. The court is responding to a complaint regarding VIP treatment and a syndicate operated by those incarcerated in the excise, coal, and custom milling cases. The ED has provisionally attached assets worth nearly 50 crore rupees from Suryakant Tiwari, the alleged mastermind. The ED’s probe indicates that illegal collections of Rs 25 per ton of coal were made from coal transporters between July 2020 and June 2022 following a conspiracy involving influential figures. The illegal levy was facilitated by converting online permits to offline, leading to a recovery of approximately 570 crore rupees. The funds were used for bribery and electoral expenditures, with Tripathi and others acquiring various assets.