Court convicts Lalu in fourth fodder scam, acquits Mishra
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 Shuvapal Singh delivered the judgment relating to fraudulent withdrawal of Rs31.3 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.
Former Bihar chief minister Rabri Devi and her elder son Tej Pratap Yadav expressed disappointment over the conviction.
“I was expecting acquittal. It disappointed us. But we respect the verdict and have faith in judiciary,” Rabri Devi said. —