by admin | May 25, 2021 | News, Politics
Ranchi : Former Bihar Chief Minister Lalu Prasad will be jailed for 14 years in the fourth fodder scam case he has been convicted in, with a special CBI court here on Saturday sentencing him to seven years each in two cases under it, and ordering the sentences run consecutively.
Pronouncing the sentence, CBI judge Shivpal Singh sentenced the Rashtriya Janatya Dal (RJD) supremo to seven years rigorous imprisonment on the various sections of the Indian Penal Code he has been charged under and levied a fine of Rs 30 lakh, which if unpaid, would entail a further year’s simple imprisonment.
Lalu Prasad was sentenced to a similar sentence and fine on the charges under the Prevention of Corruption Act.
“The sentences run in the consecutive way, not concurrently,” says the judgment of the special court.
The court on March 19 convicted Lalu Prasad in the fourth fodder scam case but acquitted another former Chief Minister Jagannath Mishra.
Both Lalu Prasad and Mishra are facing five cases each in the fodder scam in Ranchi.
There were 31 accused in this case, of which 19 were convicted and 12 acquitted.
Lalu Prasad was convicted in the first fodder scam case in 2013 and awarded five years in jail.
He was convicted by a special CBI court in the second case on December 23, 2017, and awarded three and half years’ imprisonment on January 6.
He was convicted in the third case on January 24, related to fraudulent withdrawals from the Chaibasa treasury, and got a five-year jail term.
The multi-million-rupee fodder scam surfaced in the 1990s when Lalu Prasad was Chief Minister of undivided Bihar. The probe was handed over to the Central Bureau of Investigation on the Patna High Court’s order.
The bulk of the cases were transferred to Ranchi after Jharkhand was carved out of Bihar in 2000.
—IANS
by admin | May 25, 2021 | News, Politics
Ranchi : A special CBI court here on Monday convicted RJD chief and former Bihar Chief Minister Lalu Prasad in the fourth fodder scam case but acquitted another former Chief Minister Jagannath Mishra.
Judge Shivpal Singh delivered the judgment in case relating to fraudulent withdrawal of Rs 3.13 crore from December 1995 to January 1996 from the Dumka treasury. The verdict, scheduled on March 15, was deferred four times.
The judge delivered the verdict alphabetically but Lalu Prasad — who was the Chief Minister of undivided Bihar when the multi-million-rupee fodder scam surfaced in 1990s — reached the court after it was delivered. Mishra was, however, present in the court.
Lalu Prasad was admitted to the Rajendra Institute of Medical Science (RIMS) on Saturday after he complained of constipation. His lawyer was present when the verdict came.
After the judgment, Lalu Prasad returned to RIMS for further treatment.
This is second case in which Mishra has been acquitted. Both Lalu Prasad and Mishra are facing five cases each in the fodder scam in Ranchi.
There were 31 accused in this case, of which 19 were convicted and 12 acquitted.
According to Lalu Prasad’s lawyer Prabhat Kumar, the CBI court will deliver the quantum of the sentence later this week.
When the FIR was first filed against Lalu Prasad in 1996, there were 49 accused, out of which 14 died during trial.
Besides Mishra, the acquitted include politicians like Dhruva Bhagat, R.K. Rana and Jagdish Sharma.
Reacting to the judgement, RJD leader Raghuvansh Prasad Singh said: “There were four conspirators in the case and three including Mishra have been acquitted. This indicates that (Prime Minster) Narendra Modi is playing some game. We will appeal.”
Lalu Prasad was convicted in the first fodder scam case in 2013 and awarded five years in jail.
He was convicted in the second case on December 23, 2017 and awarded three-and-a-half years imprisonment.
The RJD chief was convicted in the third case on January 24 and awarded a five-year jail term.
The bulk of the cases were transferred to Ranchi after Jharkhand was carved out of Bihar in 2000.
—IANS
by admin | May 25, 2021 | News, Politics
Ranchi : A Special court on Wednesday convicted former Bihar Chief Ministers Lalu Prasad and Jagannath Mishra and former Jharkhand Chief Secretary Sajjal Chkravarty in another fodder scam case.
The special Central Bureau of Investigation court of Judge S.S. Prasad pronounced the judgment related to fraudulent withdrawal of Rs 33.67 crore from the Chaibasa Treasury in 1992-1993.
It was alleged that the Rs 33.67-crore was withdrawn on fake allotment letters.
The special CBI court convicted five persons and acquitted six in this case. This is third case of fodder scam in which Rashtriya Janata Dal chief Lalu Prasad has been convicted.
—IANS
by admin | May 25, 2021 | News, Politics
By Nityanand Shukla,
Ranchi : In a huge setback to the RJD, its supremo Lalu Prasad was on Saturday sentenced to three-and-a-half-years jail in a fodder scam case.
After three days of arguments on the quantum of punishment, special CBI judge Shivpal Singh pronounced the order through video conferencing.
As the CBI judge was delivering the sentence, Lalu Prasad, who is at present lodged in the Central Jail here, was standing with folded hands.
The court also slapped two fines of Rs 5 lakh each on the former Bihar Chief Minister. If the fine is not deposited, he will have to stay in jail for another six months.
The court convicted Lalu Prasad and 15 others on December 23 in the case relating to the multi-million-rupee scam.
Lalu Prasad was sentenced to three-and-a-half years imprisonment on offences of cheating, along with criminal conspiracy under the the Indian Penal Code (IPC).
He was also sentenced to the same period under the Prevention of Corruption Act (PCA). Both punishment will go simultaneously.
The sentences range from three-and-a-half-years to seven years imprisonment. The maximum fine imposed was Rs 10 lakh, slapped on three convicts including Jagdish Sharma, former Public Accounts Committee chairman, while they and three others got the seven years in jail too. Thre remaining nine were also sentenced to three and half years in jail.
The arguments on quantum of sentence had been going on since Thursday when those of five convicts were heard and another five, including Lalu Prasad, was heard on Friday.
While hearing arguments of quantum of sentence, the judge observed that the convicts “should be kept in open jail as they have experience in looking after cows”.
The CBI court had acquitted another former Bihar Chief Minister Jagannath Mishra and five others in the case, relating to fraudulent withdrawal of Rs 84.5 lakh from the Deoghar district treasury between 1990 and 1994 in then undivided Bihar.
Lalu Prasad was the Chief Minister of the undivided state from 1990 to 1997.
Convicted in another fodder scam case in 2013, he was sentenced to five years imprisonment and is on bail.
He was facing a total five cases in the fodder scam and the judgment in two more cases are likely to be pronounced within one month.
The multi-million-fodder scam surfaced in 1996 and at directive of Patna High Court, the investigation was handed over to the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI). When Lalu Prasad moved the Supreme Court against high court order, the SC ordered the Patna High Court to monitor the investigation.
Lalu Prasad had to step down as Chief Minister post in 1997 following his arrest in the scam.
A total of 62 cases were filed by the CBI and majority of them were transferred Ranchi after Jharkhand was carved out from Bihar in 2000. The special CBI court has delivered judgment in 48 cases and several politicians, bureaucrats and others have been convicted.
—IANS
by admin | May 25, 2021 | News, Politics
Tejashwi Yadav
Ranchi : A special CBI court on Wednesday issued notices to former Bihar Deputy Chief Minister Tejashwi Yadav and three others over their statements regarding RJD chief Lalu Prasad’s conviction in the fodder scam case.
“The CBI court of Shivapal Singh issued the notices asking why contempt should not be initiated against the four people for their statements issued after Lalu Prasad was convicted,” lawyer Arvind Singh told the media.
Besides Tejashwi Yadav, the notices were issued to former minister and senior Rashtriya Janata Dal leader Raghuvansh Prasad Singh, RJD spokesman Manoj Jha and Congress leader Manish Tiwary.
When Lalu Prasad was convicted in the fodder scam case on December 23, the RJD leaders had questioned the acquittal of former Bihar Chief Minister Jagganth Mishra.
They said Mishra was a Brahmin and so he was acquitted and Lalu Prasad was convicted as he belonged to backward class.
—IANS
