Supreme Court names new trial judge for coal scam cases

The Supreme Court appointed a new judge, Sunaina Sharma, on Monday (January 12, 2026) to conduct the trials in the coal scam cases being probed by the CBI.

A Bench headed by Chief Justice Surya Kant recorded submissions by special public prosecutor and senior advocate R. S. Cheema, that incumbent Special CBI Judge Sanjay Bansal was allowed to continue from April 8, 2025, for a period of six months.

Mr. Cheema said that more than eight months had passed since then.

The Bench considered the names of three judicial officers submitted by the Delhi High Court to replace Judge Bansal.

“We appoint Sunaina Sharma as a special judge (the Prevention of Corruption Act/CBI/coal block allocation cases). The High Court is at liberty to seek replacement of the aforesaid in case of any exigency,” the CJI ordered.

The Bench also directed the apex court registry to list the pleas related to the coal scam cases before an appropriate Bench.

On April 8, 2025, the Bench had relieved another Special CBI Judge, Arun Bhardwaj, and replaced him with Dheeraj Mor.

A total of 29 corruption cases filed by the CBI are currently pending before two special courts set up to try coal scam cases; another 27 cases have been disposed of so far.

On January 16, 2025, the Directorate of Enforcement informed the top court that 45 prosecution complaints (ED’s equivalent of a chargesheet), including supplementary ones, were pending under the PMLA. The top court had in 2014 quashed the allocation of 214 coal blocks by the Centre between 1993 and 2010.