'Investigate first, then act': Naveen Jindal says naming Vedanta's Anil Agarwal in FIR raises serious concerns

Vedanta boiler plant explosion latest: Industrialist and BJP MP Naveen Jindal said on Saturday that naming Vedanta Chairman Anil Agarwal in the FIR in connection with the explosion at the company's boiler plant in Chhattisgarh raises serious concerns. He said that proper compensation and livelihood support to the 20 families who have lost everything, along with a thorough investigation, are non-negotiable. 

Detailing Agarwal's humble beginnings, Jindal wrote on X, "He is a self-made man from a humble and backward community background who built a global enterprise from scratch. He had no role in that plant's operations. When accidents happen in PSU plants or railways, do we name the chairman? We do not. The same standard must apply to the private sector too." 

He urged the authorities to investigate first, establish responsibility based on evidence and then act. 

"Investigate first. Establish responsibility based on evidence. Then act. India's #ViksitBharat vision needs people like Shri Anil Agarwal to keep investing and building. That happens only when investors trust the system."

Read Naveen Jindal's full post here

Naveen Jindal's appeal to industry bodies

In another post, Jindal appealed to industry bodies to help Anil Agarwal in this time of crisis. 

"When due process is bypassed and investor confidence is threatened, as in the case of the baseless FIR filed against Shri Anil Agarwal Ji, your silence is not neutrality. It is a failure of your core mandate. Speak up for justice and what is right. That is what you exist for," he wrote. 

Vedanta boiler plant explosion case update

Police have registered a First Information Report (FIR) under sections related to causing death by negligence and negligent conduct with machinery in connection with the April 14 blast at Vedanta’s boiler plant in Chhattisgarh. Sakti Superintendent of Police Prafull Thakur told PTI that 8-10 individuals, including Vedanta Group chairman Anil Agarwal and plant head Devendra Patel, have been named in the FIR.

A preliminary technical investigation into the blast has found that excessive fuel accumulation inside the boiler furnace led to a pressure build-up, which triggered the explosion, police officials said. A report by the Forensic Science Laboratory (FSL) in Sakti also confirmed that fuel accumulation and the resulting excessive pressure were the primary causes of the explosion, they added.

The death toll in the April 14 blast at Vedanta’s power plant in Chhattisgarh’s Sakti district has risen to 21 after a worker succumbed to injuries, officials said on Friday. The explosion occurred in a steel tube carrying high-pressure steam from the boiler to the turbine at the power plant located in Singhitarai village.

A worker identified as Kismat Ali from Madhya Pradesh’s Singrauli died at a private hospital in Raipur on Thursday night, Sakti superintendent of police Prafull Thakur said. Officials said four workers died on the spot, while nine succumbed to injuries soon after the incident. Another seven died in hospitals on April 15.

The deceased include six labourers from West Bengal, five from Chhattisgarh, three each from Jharkhand and Uttar Pradesh, and two each from Bihar and Madhya Pradesh, they added.