NEW DELHI, Oct 16 - A special court today refused to summon former Prime Minister Manmohan Singh as an accused in a coal scam case, observing that sufficient evidence was not there to call him and held ex-Chief Minister of Jharkhand Madhu Koda�s plea in this regard as �devoid of any merits�.
Dismissing Koda�s plea, in which he had sought summoning of Singh and two others as additional accused in the case, the court said that averments made in the application were �self contradictory in nature�.
Referring to a Supreme Court verdict in which apex court had discussed the role and position of the Prime Minister, the court said that seeking summoning of Singh as Prime Minister has to be seen from a completely different yard stick.
�Thus, I am of the considered opinion that seeking summoning of Dr Manmohan Singh as Prime Minister has to be seen from a completely different yard stick, then seeking his summoning as a Minister,� Special CBI Judge Bharat Parashar said.
�Though one may argue that summoning of Dr Manmohan Singh as Minister of Coal should be considered, but as already mentioned by me, at this stage of the matter I do not find sufficient evidence warranting his summoning as an accused in the present case,� the judge said in his 23-page order. � PTI
