A special court on Monday convicted Jharkhand Ispat Pvt Ltd, along with its directors RS Rungta and RC Rungta, in the coal block allocation scam related to the North Dhadu block in Jharkhand. This is the first judgement in the coal block allocation case, in which Special Judge Bharat Parashar convicted them of criminal conspiracy and cheating. However, the court acquitted them of forgery charges, The Indian Express reported.

The Rungtas, who were out on bail, have been taken into judicial custody. The next hearing is scheduled for March 31. In the chargesheet filed by the Central Bureau of Investigation, it was alleged that JIPL had “grossly misrepresented” a number of aspects before the Ministry of Steel and the Ministry of Coal to inflate their claim, which had prompted ministry officials and the screening committee to allocate the coal block to them. The accused had pleaded not guilty and appealed for a trial last March, denying the allegations.