Six accused in Chhattisgarh’s coal levy scam set for release after apex court grants interim bail

RAIPUR: Day after Supreme Courtgranted interim bail to six accused inChhattisgarh coal-levy scam including two suspended IAS officers Ranu Sahu, Sameer Vishnoi and a former state officer Saumya Chaurasia, they are scheduled to be released from Raipur jail on Saturday.The release, initially scheduled for today, was delayed due to late receipt of release orders at the Raipur Central Jail.The defense counsel advocate Faizal Rizvi told the media that Saumya Chaurasia, former deputy secretary to the ex-Chief Minister Bhupesh Baghel, Ranu Sahu, suspended IAS officer, Sameer Vishnoi, suspended IAS officer, and others including Rajnikant Tiwari, Virendra Jaiswal, Sandeep Nayak will be released on Saturday while the timing has not been confirmed yet. Rizvi said that the SC has issued release of eight persons but as of now six of them are getting released, while other two, businessmen Suryakant Tiwari and Nikhil Chandrakar is still pending due to other cases against them and they will continue to remain in judicial custody.The Supreme Court bench of Justice Surya Kant and Justice Dipankar Datta granted bail but imposed a key condition — all six accused must not stay within Chhattisgarh until further orders. The restriction aims to prevent possible tampering with evidence or influencing witnesses.The bail conditions include that the accused must report their residential address outside the state within a week of release, they must submit their passports to designated special courts, mandatory cooperation with investigation agencies and court appearances and furnish details of current residence must be shared with the jurisdictional police station.The Enforcement Directorate (ED) alleges a massive Rs 570 crore illegal coal levy scam involving a nexus of bureaucrats, politicians, and traders. The scam operated by converting online permits to offline, enabling a systematic extortion racket from coal transporters.A key player, Sameer Vishnoi, then Director of the State Mining Department, allegedly issued the order that enabled this offline transition on July 15, 2020. Traders were forced to pay Rs 25 per ton to the network allegedly led by Suryakant Tiwari in exchange for transport clearances.The ED claimed that Suryakant Tiwari, a coal businessman, ran the collection syndicate and acted as the kingpin, with bureaucrats and political operatives facilitating the scam. Over time, the network extorted over Rs 570 crore.The case has become one of the largest corruption scandals in Chhattisgarh’s recent history, with political ramifications and a sweeping legal battle still underway.