A special Central Bureau of Investigation court in Ranchi on Thursday deferred by a day its verdict in the fourth fodder scam case involving former Bihar Chief Ministers Lalu Prasad Yadav and Jagannath Mishra, ANI reported. The court had completed hearing the case on March 5.
The court heard a petition Yadav filed, seeking that three officials of the accountant general’s office of the Bihar government in the 1990s be made a party to the case and summons issued to them, PTI reported. The court reserved its verdict.
The Rashtriya Janata Dal chief has already been convicted in three earlier cases and faces more than 13 years in prison now.
The fourth case involves the alleged fraudulent withdrawal of around Rs 3.5 crore from the Dumka district’s treasury when Yadav was chief minister.
The cases pertain to allegedly fraudulent withdrawals from the treasuries of multiple districts in Bihar when Yadav was chief minister. Around Rs 1,000 crore was embezzled from the state exchequer for the purchase of fictitious medicines and fodder for cattle between 1990 and 1997.
On January 24, a Ranchi court had convicted Yadav in a case connected to the withdrawal of Rs 33.67 crore from the Chaibasa district treasury in 1992-’93. He was sentenced to five years in jail. In two earlier cases, he was sentenced to five years, and three-and-a-half years in prison.
Chaibasa is now in the state of Jharkhand. A Jharkhand court rejected Yadav’s bail plea in February. His family has claimed that the verdicts are part of a conspiracy orchestrated by the Bharatiya Janata Party against him.
Limited-time offer: Big stories, small price. Keep independent media alive. Become a Scroll member today!
Our journalism is for everyone. But you can get special privileges by buying an annual Scroll Membership. Sign up today!