Dhanbad, Jan. 27: All eyes are on the lower court here which will pronounce its judgment in the scam involving senior officials of two public sector undertakings tomorrow, almost 10 years after the proceedings formally began.

The case relates to supply of ash and stones through railway wagons instead of coal to the Fertiliser Corporation of India’s unit at Sindri in Dhanbad in 1994. “This is for the first time in the history of the country that the officers of two organisations connived together to swindle money amounting to crores. We hope they would be punished,” said Ramashray Singh, a social activist who had turned intervenor in the case.

The matter assumes significance since the district and sessions judge of Dhanbad, Abdus Samad, had on January 8 pulled up the prosecution for trying to “linger the disposal of the case”.

The order said the public prosecutor had filed a petition before the court of the sub-divisional judicial magistrate pleading for re-interrogation of the investigating officer. The court rejected the plea and the prosecution filed a revision petition with the district and sessions judge.

While rejecting the appeal, Samad said: “I find that the impugned petition of the APP (assistant public prosecutor) is vague. By filing the revision petition, the APP appears to linger the case for an indefinite period. The APP has made the prayer to recall the prayer under Sections 311 of CrPC in the ends of justice. Rather if such prayer is allowed it would mean miscarriage of justice.”

Two cases are under trial in the lower court. The first was lodged on September 27, 1994, when jawans of the Central Industrial Security Force (CISF) posted with the Sindri unit of FCI detected that the wagons of coal supplied from the Bera and Dobari sidings of BCCL actually contained ash and stone boulders. On October 13, the CISF unearthed a similar racket.

The cases generated interest since the accused persons are well-linked in bureaucratic and political circles. While D.N. Prasad is said to be related to a former union minister, Bharat Singh enjoys the patronage of a political heavyweight in the NDA government at the Centre. Another accused, the then chief engineer of FCI M.P. Jha, happens to be the brother-in-law of a former union home secretary.