Supreme Court Grants Posthumous Clean Chit To Manmohan Singh

The Supreme Court of India has formally closed the long-standing coal block allocation case against the late former Prime Minister Manmohan Singh. This posthumous clean chit comes two years after Singh's passing, effectively ending a legal battle that shadowed his second term as the head of the United Progressive Alliance (UPA) government. The bench noted that the evidence did not support the allegations of criminal conspiracy or corruption against Singh personally, who held the coal portfolio during the period in question. This ruling terminates all legal proceedings and summons that were previously issued by special CBI courts.

The Congress party welcomed the verdict, with senior leader Shashi Tharoor describing Singh as the "cleanest man in Indian politics." Tharoor remarked that while the Supreme Court's certificate is legally significant, those who knew Singh never doubted his integrity. The party has since demanded an apology from Prime Minister Narendra Modi and the BJP, arguing that the "Coalgate" allegations were part of a coordinated campaign to tarnish the UPA's reputation and destabilize the government. Congress leaders emphasized that the court's decision vindicates Singh's legacy of honest public service.

The coal block allocation controversy, popularly known as the Coalgate scam, erupted in 2012 following a report by the Comptroller and Auditor General (CAG). The report alleged a massive loss to the exchequer due to the non-transparent allocation of coal mines between 2004 and 2009. Although the CBI had previously summoned Singh to appear in court, he had challenged those summons in the Supreme Court. The closure of this case marks the final chapter in one of the most high-profile corruption probes in modern Indian history, clearing the name of the economist-politician who led India for a decade.