Hindalco shares fall 5% after CBI books KM Birla in coal scam

Shares in Aditya Birla-promoted firms fell as much as 5 per cent on Tuesday after the CBI booked industrialist Kumar Mangalam Birla and aluminium maker Hindalco in the coal allocation scam. Mr Birla is the promoter of the Aditya Birla Group, which besides Hindalco runs companies such as mobile carrier Idea Cellular and financial services major AB Nuvo.

After initial selloff, most group stocks, traded off the day's low. Hindalco shares traded 1.3 per cent higher at Rs 112 as of 12.10 p.m. after earlier falling around 5 per cent. AB Nuvo shares were down 3.3 per cent at Rs 1,224, while Idea Cellular shares traded flat at Rs 185. (Track stock)

Mr Birla, 46, faces charges of cheating and conspiracy, and will be called in for questioning, CBI sources said.  The investigating agency is conducting raids at the Hyderabad, Mumbai and Bhubaneswar offices of Hindalco.
 
The $40 billion (Rs 2.4 trillion at 60 per US dollar) conglomerate has denied any knowledge of an FIR from the CBI and has said that there is no reason for it to be booked in the coal scam.
 
The CBI is investigating how and why coal fields were allocated to private players without a transparent bidding process.  
 
The case is sensitive for the Congress-led UPA government as Prime Minister Manmohan Singh held direct charge of the coal ministry during part of the period under scrutiny.

The "Coal-Gate" scandal came to light in March 2012, when the government's auditor (CAG) said the country lost Rs. 1.86 lakh crore because coal fields were allocated without a transparent bidding process.