Akela for BeyondHeadlines
The Bombay High Court have directed MRA Marg Police to arrest director and officers of Raipur based company Hira Steels Limited (HSL) by giving them 72 hours advanced notice for allegedly their involvement in a fake Iron Ore certificate scam. A world renowned, Mumbai based inspection and testing company Geo-Chem had filed case against him. This is HSL who is beneficiary of Rs 5,000 crore in Coal Gate scam.
On November 23, the Bombay High Court have directed (copy available with author) to the MRA Marg Police probing into a fake Iron Ore certificate scam, to give 72 hours notice to the directors and officers of HSL before arresting them.
“Honorable High Court have issued arrest warrant to directors of HSL by giving them 72 hours advanced notice for allegedly their involvement in a fake Iron Ore certificate scam. Having knowledge of quality the HSL directors supplied materials to China,” said Shivaji Phadtare, investigation officer, MRA Marg police station.
Geo-Chem Company, having head office at Fort and 25 branches in Mumbai and all over. Company is expert in inspection, survey and testing of cargo and commodities in international level. On May 14, 2012 the directors of Geo-Chem came to know that Raipur (Chhatisgarh) police have raided their Goa office and inquiring about their branch manager Jagannath Rao. Police also told that he had registered an FIR against Rao, Goa based iron ore exporter Prasanna V Ghotage and others under various sections of IPC on the complaint of HSL. Later police arrested to Rao alleging that Rao had issued fake testing certificate to the Ghotage.
In June this year Geo-Chem had filed a complaint under 156 (3) before Additional Chief Metropolitan Magistrate, 38th Court, Ballard Pier. On the court order MRA Marg police registered an MECR against Rao and Ghotage on September 30, 2012 of cheating and various IPC. During investigation police found that HSL directors Jagdish Prasad Agrawal, Amit Agrawal, Ajay Ahluwalia and Pankaj Agrawal are also an accused in to the matter. Police issued summons to them for recording their statements. Instead of helping in police investigation HSL directors moved to high court demanding quashing the MECR. The Geo Chem’s lawyers put the entire matter before the court where court ordered to arrest the directors of HSL.
“When we inquired found that Ghotage bribed Rs 5 lakh to the Rao in knowledge of HSL for issuing fake certificate. We also recovered 1040 fake certificates from the drawer of Rao printed on June 22, 2011,” said Pradip Palav, general manager Geo-Chem.
According to Palav HSL alleged that Goa based iron ore exporter Prasanna V Ghotage had signed an agreement with them on May 7, 2011 for supply of 1, 10,000 metric tons of iron ore having 51% Iron content. Ghotage supplied only 41,253 metric tons of iron ore to HSL. In turn HSL supplied the same to an end buyer in China. In July 2011, prior to the cargo reaching China, the end Chinese buyer had sent an email to the head office of Geo-Chem at Mumbai inquiring on the authenticity of the Geo-Chem report received by then. Geo-Chem Mumbai immediately replied to the Chinese buyer saying that the report was fake as it was not issued on their proper security certificates which have a hologram and a pre-printed unique identification number along with a disclaimer. Later on when the material reached China and it was tested in China in August 2011, it was found that the iron ore supplied was found to have an inferior quality and the iron content was only about 41%.
After repeated attempts Pankaj Agrawal one of the directors of HSL was not available for comment as his mobile phone was continuing out of coverage area.
(Akela is working with MID DAY as Principle Correspondent)
