Lalu Prasad convicted in 4th fodder scam case, Jagannath Mishra acquitted

A special CBI court here on Monday convicted RJD leader and former Bihar Chief Minister Lalu Prasad in the fourth fodder scam case but acquitted former Chief Minister Jagannath Mishra.

The fifth case relating to fraudulent withdrawal of Rs 139 million from the Doranda treasury in Ranchi is pending with the court.
 

Judge Shuvapal Singh delivered the judgment relating to fraudulent withdrawal of Rs 31.3 million 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 when the wrongdoing took place -- 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.

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, the CBI court will pronounce the quantum of sentence later.

The court had earlier postponed the judgement in view of the Lalu Prasad's counsel filing a petition under 319 CrPC asking the then three officials of the Accountant General (in the 1990s) be made a party to the case.

Section 319 Cr PC is invoked when there is some strong and cogent evidence against the accused.

Prasad's counsel said he had filed the petition on March 14 and re-submitted it later after correcting some typographical mistakes.

The special CBI court of Shiv Pal Singh allowed admission of the petition on Friday.

After perusal of records, the court found prima facie case and the petition filed on 14/3/2018 was allowed, said Anand, another counsel for Prasad.

Apart from Prasad and Mishra, 29 others including former IAS officers and animal husbandry officials are accused in the Dumka Treasury case.

Prasad had already been convicted in three fodder cases while Mishra was convicted in two fodder cases.

A special CBI court on January 24 sentenced Lalu Prasad and Jagannath Mishra to five years in jail in a fodder scam case related to fraudulent withdrawal of Rs 376.2 million from the Chaibasa treasury.

On January 6, a special CBI court had sentenced Prasad to three-and-a-half years in jail and fined him Rs 1 million in a fodder scam case relating to fraudulent withdrawal of Rs 8.92 million from the Deoghar Treasury 21 years ago.

In 2013, Prasad was convicted in the first fodder scam case involving withdrawal of Rs 377 million from the Chaibasa treasury.

Prasad has been lodged in the Birsa Munda jail at Ranchi since December 23 last year after being convicted in the second case pertaining to illegal withdrawal of money from the Deogarh treasury.

A fifth case relating to alleged fraudulent withdrawal of Rs 139 million from the Doranda treasury in Ranchi is pending with the court.

The over Rs 9 billion fodder scam cases relate to illegal withdrawal of money from government treasury in different districts in the animal husbandry department in undivided Bihar in 1990s when RJD was in power in the state.