Today (8th April), The Delhi High Court temporarily isued stay order for the conviction of former minister Dilip Ray in the coal scam case. This decision allows Ray to participate in upcoming elections without the burden of his conviction. Ray’s involvement in the coal scam led to his conviction, but this stay order provides him with an opportunity to contest elections. The High Court’s intervention grants Ray a reprieve in his legal proceedings for the time being.
New Delhi: On Monday, the Delhi High Court granted a stay on the conviction of former Union Minister Dilip Ray. Ray received a three-year jail sentence in connection with a coal scam involving irregularities in the allocation of a Jharkhand block in 1999.
This stay enables him to participate in the upcoming Odisha legislative assembly elections. Justice Swarana Kanta Sharma approved Ray’s request for the stay, emphasizing the potential irreversible consequences if the conviction is not suspended pending a possible acquittal later on.
The court stated,
“If the applicant’s (Ray) plea is denied, he will forfeit the opportunity to run for election, leading to irreversible damage to his political career and thwarting his aspiration to serve his constituency,”
The high court ordered that Dilip Ray’s conviction in the case will remain suspended while his appeal against the conviction and sentence from the trial court is ongoing.
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Ray, who served as Minister of State (coal) in the Atal Bihari Vajpayee government, sentenced to three years in jail on October 26, 2020, along with a fine of Rs 10 lakh.
In his petition, the 71-year-old Ray expressed his desire to contest the upcoming Odisha Assembly elections, emphasizing that this opportunity could be his final chance to serve the people.
Represented by senior advocates Mukul Rohatgi and Pramod Kumar Dubey, Ray argued that under Section 8(3) of the Representation of the People Act, he faces disqualification from participating in elections, which significantly prejudice him, particularly considering his age.
The CBI, represented by senior advocate R S Cheema and lawyer Tarannum Cheema, opposed the plea, arguing that Ray did not deserve a suspension of his conviction due to the severity of corruption involved in the case related to coal block allocations.
Despite the seriousness of the offense and the CBI’s appeal for enhanced punishment, the court considered Ray’s extensive political career, which included ministerial roles at both the national and Odisha levels, before granting him this relief.
The court stated,
“At 71 years of age, he aims to participate in the elections scheduled for May 2024, aspiring to serve both his constituency and the nation. His intention is not solely motivated by the suspension of his conviction; rather, he has a political tenure spanning over 35 years,”
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The high court observed,
“The elections are slated for 2024, he is 71 years old, and given the numerous appeals and cross-appeals in this case, their resolution is expected to take considerable time and may not be concluded in the foreseeable future,”
The court clarified that this ruling does not equate to acquittal but rather signifies a suspension of conviction under unique circumstances.
On October 27, 2020, the high court issued notice to the CBI regarding Ray’s appeal challenging his conviction and sentence, leading to the suspension of his three-year jail term.
However, at that time, Ray did not push for the suspension of the conviction order due to the appeal being scheduled for final resolution. The court dismissed the application as it was not pursued.
Apart from Ray, the trial court also sentenced two senior ministry officials, Pradip Kumar Banerjee and Nitya Nand Gautam, to three-year jail terms each during that period.
Ray convicted by the trial court for offenses including criminal conspiracy, criminal breach of trust by a public servant, and cheating under IPC and provisions of the Prevention of Corruption Act.
The court mentioned that Ray “dishonestly facilitated” the allocation of an abandoned non-nationalized coal mining area to Castron Technologies Ltd (CTL) against legal provisions.
The case revolves around the allocation of the Brahmadiha coal block in Jharkhand’s Giridih district to CTL in 1999.