NEW DELHI: The Supreme Court is scheduled to decide on Monday the name of the judicial officer who would replace special judge Bharat Parashar to conduct trials in the sensational coal scam cases pending since 2014.
The apex court recently took note of a letter from the Delhi High Court's Registrar General that permission be granted to nominate or post another suitable presiding judicial officer as special judge in place of Parashar who since 2014 has been conducting trials in coal scam cases.
A bench headed by Chief Justice S A Bobde on March 15 had requested the Chief Justice of the Delhi High Court to provide names of five trial court judges of "high caliber and absolute integrity" for appointing one of them as the special judge to replace Parashar.
The bench, also comprising justices A S Bopanna and V Ramasubramanian, on Monday will take up the issue.
It had on March 15 said, "We find that Bharat Parashar who has acted as a Special Judge (PC Act), (CBI)-07, Patiala House Court, New Delhi, needs to be replaced, as he has now completed more than 6 years in the same post after having been posted as Special Judge in the above mentioned court since 19.08.2014."
"We accordingly request the Chief Justice, Delhi High Court to give us a panel of names of about five judges of a high caliber and absolute integrity to enable us to suggest an appropriate replacement for Bharat Parashar, Special Judge," the bench had said.
The bench took note of the submission of special public prosecutor R S Cheema that the law contemplates the disposal of the such cases has to be ensured in two years which may be extended upto four times by periods of six months each.
It had taken note of the fact that Parashar has been acting as the special judge since 2014 and his replacement is now needed and fixed the case after two weeks to consider the names to be provided by the Chief Justice of the High Court.
The top court in 2014 had quashed 214 coal blocks allocated by the Centre between 1993 and 2010 after taking note of PILs, including one filed by lawyer M L Sharma, and had ordered conducting of trial by a special CBI Judge.