Supreme Court Closes Coal Block Allocation Case Against Former PM Manmohan Singh

PTI, July 29, 2026, New Delhi: The Supreme Court on Wednesday closed a criminal case against former Prime Minister Manmohan Singh in a coal block allocation case while setting aside a summoning order passed against him.

Singh, who passed away on December 27, 2024, now stands formally acquitted in the high-profile criminal case.

A Bench comprising Chief Justice Surya Kant and Justices Joymalya Bagchi and V. Mohan accepted the CBI's closure report, giving a clean chit to the former Prime Minister and others.

The apex court said there was no reason for the trial court judge to turn down the closure reports of the CBI and take cognisance.

"Due to the unfortunate demise of the appellant, this appeal could be disposed of as infructuous. But with a view to consider the aspect of the learned Special Judge taking cognisance and summoning the appellant, we have gone through both closure reports filed by the CBI," the Bench said.

"Having regard to the relevant parameters consistently laid down by this court on acceptance of reports of the investigating agency, we are satisfied that there was no reason for the learned judge to turn down the closure reports of the CBI and take cognisance. We allow the appeal and set aside the impugned judgment."

"As a result, we accept the closure reports of the CBI and close the matter," the Bench said.