Delhi High Court rejects plea by former Jharkhand CM Madhu Koda to suspend conviction in coal scam

The Delhi High Court today dismissed an application filed by former Jharkhand Chief Minister Madhu Koda who had sought the suspension of his conviction by a trial court in a coal scam case [Madhu Koda vs. State though CBI]..Justice Neena Bansal Krishna passed the order dismissing Koda’s application..Koda, who served as the Jharkhand's Chief Minister from 2006 until his resignation in 2008, was convicted by a Delhi Court in 2017 on corruption charges in the coal scam case. The case, which was probed by the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI), involved allegations of irregularities in the allocation of the Rajhara North coal block in Jharkhand to Vini Iron and Steel Udyog Ltd (VISUL) in 2008.Koda was was sentenced by the trial court to three years of rigorous imprisonment in this case. He filed an appeal challenging the trial court's verdict and was granted bail during the pendency of the appeal..He later moved a plea to suspend the conviction so that he may contest Assembly polls in Jharkhand. His three-year sentence meant that he stood disqualified from contesting the elections.One such plea was dismissed by the Delhi High Court in 2020 when Justice Vibhu Bakhru observed that it would not be apposite to stay the conviction and help Koda contest elections till he is acquitted.In May this year, Koda moved another plea seeking similar relief, which has been dismissed today. This court, in its earlier Order, while recognizing the power to stay conviction, observed that “such power is to be exercised in exceptional circumstances” and that it is limited to cases where this court is convinced that not staying conviction would lead to “injustice and irreversible consequences”.While rejecting the application this time, the court observed that no new circumstance has arisen that would warrant fresh consideration of his plea."The Appellant may seek expeditious disposal of his Appeal, which does not have the uniqueness of being voluminous, as claimed. Moreover, no new rights have got created in his favour. There is also no change in circumstances or in law, entitling a fresh look on this second Application for suspension of Conviction." .Senior Advocate Amit Kumar, with Advocates Luv Kumar, Priyanka Parmar and Neeraj Kumar appeared for Madhu KodaSenior Advocate R.S. Cheema, with Advocates Tarannum Cheema, Akshay N, Sadeev Kang and Akash Singh appeared for State