Madhu Koda Scam

The Delhi High Court on Friday rejected a plea by former Jharkhand chief minister Madhu Koda seeking to stay his conviction in a coal scam case. Koda had sought a stay on his conviction to enable him to contest upcoming assembly elections in the state. "Application dismissed," said Justice Neena Bansal Krishna. Koda, former coal secretary H C Gupta, former Jharkhand chief secretary A K Basu, and Koda's close aide Vijay Joshi were awarded three-year jail terms by a trial court for indulging in corrupt practices and hatching a criminal conspiracy in the allocation of Rajhara North Coal Block in the state to Kolkata-based company, Vini Iron and Steel Udyog Ltd (VISUL). It had also imposed fines of Rs 50 lakh, Rs 25 lakh and Rs 1 lakh on VISUL, Koda and Gupta respectively in the UPA-era coal scam. A Rs 1 lakh fine was also imposed on Basu. The convicts were granted bail during the pendency of their appeals.

The order came on Koda's plea seeking suspension of sentence and regular bail till pendency of his appeal before the high court

Corruption in the mining scam is said to amount to upwards of Rs 4,000 crore