The Jharkhand High Court on Friday rejected Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD) supremo Lalu Prasad Yadav’s plea for bail extension by three months asking him to return to prison by 30 August.

Yadav’s provisional bail expires on 27 August following which he will have to go back to Birsa Munda Central Jail. He can reapply for bail.

The RJD chief is undergoing treatment in Mumbai’s Asian Heart Institute Hospital. The 70-year-old is recuperating after an operation of fistula conducted in June. He sought an extension due to his health condition.

His lawyers have argued that Yadav is chronic diabetic and requires time to recover post-operation.

Following the rejection of bail extension, Yadav’s lawyer Prabhat Kumar said, “He will now undergo treatment at Rajendra Institute of Medical Sciences (RIMS) in Ranchi.”

This is not the first time Lalu applied for extension. He has already been granted two extensions by the court since his conviction in the fodder scam case in December 2017.

The last extension was done on 10 August, when the court granted him permission to stay in the hospital till 20 August.

On 20 August, Yadav’s son Tejashwi Yadav visited him at the hospital.

“Visited my ailing father admitted in Asian Heart Institute, Mumbai due to various diseases. Perturbed to see his falling health & increased infection. Praying that he may recover soon under the around-the-clock monitoring & continuous medical care of specialist doctors,” wrote Tejashwi, who was the deputy Chief Minister of Bihar during the Mahagathbandhan days.

Visited my ailing father admitted in Asian Heart Institute, Mumbai due to various diseases. Perturbed to see his falling health & increased infection. Praying that he may recover soon under the around-the-clock monitoring & continuous medical care of specialist doctors. pic.twitter.com/JY0Cr7RGlf

— Tejashwi Yadav (@yadavtejashwi) August 20, 2018

Lalu Yadav was granted six weeks provisional bail for treatment in May, which was later extended by the High Court.

Yadav has been convicted in four cases of the multi-crore fodder scam – Chaibasa Treasury on 30 September 2013, another Chaibasa Treasury on 24 January 2018, Dumka Treasury on 19 February 2018 and Deoghar Treasury on 23 February 2018.

In the first case related to Chaibasa treasury, Prasad was sentenced for five years and barred from contesting elections for six years. He later got bail in the case.

He was awarded 14 years imprisonment.

The multi-million fodder scam had surfaced in the 1990s when Lalu Yadav was Bihar’s Chief Minister. At the directive of Patna High Court, the probe was handed over to the Central Bureau of Investigation.