The Keonjhar District and Sessions Court on Monday concluded the hearing on the bail plea of Uliburu mining scam accused Deepak Gupta and reserved its verdict. Another round of hearing would be conducted on December 16.
On December 6, Gupta had moved the court seeking bail. H moved the court afresh after the investigating agency submitted its chargesheet in the case. Earlier, several courts, including the High Court, had denied bail to him.
The accused was arrested on September 4, 2013 in connection with the Rs1,800-crore mining scam. Since then, he has been cooling his heels behind the bars. Gupta was operating an iron ore mine of BK Mohanty by virtue of a power of attorney. He illegally mined around 45.22 lakh tonne of iron ore and manganese beyond the lease area between 2003 and 2010 violating forest and mining laws. In May last year, the Enforcement Directorate had attached properties worth Rs484 crore belonging to Gupta and his family members.