Special CBI Court Convicts Lalu Prasad In 4th Fodder Scam; Jagannath Mishra, 11 Others Acquitted

RJD supremo Lalu Prasad on Monday was convicted in a fodder scam case related to fraudulent withdrawal of Rs 3.13 crores from Dumka treasury in Jharkhand. Bihar’s former chief minister Jagannath Mishra and a host of other politicians were acquitted in the case.

The special judge for CBI case Shiv Pal Singh announced the verdict in the case in Ranchi civil court. This is the fourth fodder scam case in which Prasad has been convicted by the special court for Animal Husbandry Department cases

There were a total of 31 accused in the case. Among them were politicians, former bureaucrats, and businessmen. The judge acquitted 12 of the accused while convicting the remaining ones. Among the acquitted persons is former minister Vidya Sagar Nishad, former MLA RK Rana and former chairman of public account committee Jagdish Sharma and Dhruv Bhagat.

“The judgment was passed today in which Lalu Prasad has been convicted. We would try for the minimum sentencing of Lalu during the argument on point of sentencing,” said Lalu’s lawyer Prabhat Kumar. He said the hearing on sentencing will be held from March 21 to 23.

The case is related to fraudulent withdrawal from Dumka treasury from December 1995 to January 1996. The FIR in this regard was registered by the government with the Dumka police station in 1996.  The CBI took over the case and registered an FIR on April 11, 1996. The charges against the accused were framed in May 2005.

The CBI produced around 245 witnesses to prove its charges against the accused while lawyers appearing on behalf of Lalu produced 15 witnesses to prove the latter’s innocence.

Lalu, who was admitted to Rajendra Institute of Medical Science and Hospital Ranchi for treatment of digestive tract problem, came to the court to sign the documents after the verdict. Mishra, who is also ill, attended the proceeding on a wheelchair and received the verdict with folded hands.