In a major blow to Lalu Prasad Yadav, a special CBI court on Wednesday convicted the RJD chief in the third fodder scam case, days after he was sentenced to three-and-a-half-years in jail.
The special CBI judge SS Prasad convicted the Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD) chief along with former Bihar CM Jagannath Mishra by Special CBI court in Ranchi in case relating to the fraudulent of ₹33.67 crore from Chaibasa district treasury during 1992-93.
Lalu has been convicted under the Prevention of Corruption Act, reports said adding that the quantum of punishment may be announced on Thursday.
The RJD chief is at present lodged in the Birsa Munda jail in Ranchi after being convicted on December 23 in a case pertaining to embezzlement of over Rs. 85 lakh from the Deoghar Treasury between 1991 and 1994.
On January 7, Lalu was sentenced to three-and-a-half years imprisonment on offences of cheating, along with criminal conspiracy under the the Indian Penal Code (IPC).
He was also sentenced to the same period under the Prevention of Corruption Act (PCA). Both punishment will go simultaneously.
However, Mishra, who was Lalu’s co-accused in the Deoghar scam as well and was let off along with six others has been convicted this time round.
Lalu Prasad was the Chief Minister of undivided Bihar from 1990 to 1997.
The RJD chief has already been convicted in another fodder scam case that cost him his Lok Sabha seat and disqualified him from contesting elections.
Prasad’s first conviction in yet another case of fodder scam in September, 2013 barred him for fighting elections for six years. Prasad is facing trial in a total of six fodder scam cases.
The multi-million-fodder scam surfaced in 1996 and at directive of Patna High Court, the investigation was handed over to the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI). When Lalu Prasad moved the Supreme Court against high court order, the SC ordered the Patna High Court to monitor the investigation.
Lalu Prasad had to step down as Chief Minister post in 1997 following his arrest in the scam.
A total of 62 cases were filed by the CBI and majority of them were transferred Ranchi after Jharkhand was carved out from Bihar in 2000. The special CBI court has delivered judgment in 48 cases and several politicians, bureaucrats and others have been convicted.