RANCHI, 10 May — Lawyers representing former Bihar chief minister and Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD) chief Laloo Prasad Yadav yesterday challenged the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) charges filed against their client in connection with a 9.5 billion rupees Animal Husbandry Department scandal.
Laloo’s lawyer Janadhan Singh said the CBI had violated the Patna High Court’s judgment that stayed the transfer of 36 cases connected with the scandal by having one of the cases heard in a special court in the neighboring state of Jharkhand. “The case does not come under the jurisdiction of Jharkhand,” Singh said.
The CBI had filed charges on Tuesday against 110 people, including Laloo, Jagannath Mishra, another former chief minister of Bihar, and three former state ministers in connection with the scam. The case involves the alleged fraudulent withdrawal of 1.82 billion rupees from the Doranda treasury of Ranchi, which is the capital of Jharkhand.
Laloo yesterday hinted that he may surrender in a day or two, but before that all legal options will be explored. “I am a law abiding citizen and will follow whatever directives I receive from the court. I am preparing to surrender before the special court of CBI, but before that I am arranging to take things like tobacco, clothes and “sattu” (a cereal),” he is reported to have said in Bihar’s capital Patna. He also launched a frontal attack on the central government, for having “masterminded” the charge sheet in a Ranchi court.
Laloo said that following the Tehelka expose, the center, out of sheer desperation and political vendetta, conspired with the CBI to book him in the forged and fabricated case to divert the country’s attention from the government’s own misdeeds.
On the other side, the RJD dissidents decided to play on the sentiments of party MLAs who hold a grudge against the party chief. The dissidents are pinning their hopes on the scenario that may unfold after Laloo’s imminent arrest or surrender before the court at Ranchi. Even though, there appeared no immediate threat to the survival of the Rabri Devi government in Bihar, but the charge sheet could not have come at a worse time for Laloo.
As presently, he is not only battling rebellion in the party but also faces the prospects of a long stint in jail, considering the fact that Jharkhand High Court will be proceeding on holiday from May 14. Since the court is going on vacation, there will be no Bench to entertain any bail plea till month end.
