Lalu Yadav To Be Sentenced Today In Fodder Scam Case

RANCHI: A special court will on Wednesday pronounce the quantum of sentence for jailed former Bihar Chief Minister and RJD chief Lalu Prasad and 15 others.

The Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD) chief was convicted on December 23 by a special Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) court had on December 23 and 15 others in a case relating to the multi-million-rupee fodder scam.

Lalu Prasad's lawyer on Tuesday told reporters that they would press for minimum punishment in the case.

"Lalu is 70 years old and suffering from many diseases. We will seek minimum punishment for him " he said.

According to lawyers, Lalu Prasad can be awarded three to seven years' punishment. If he gets three years' punishment, he would get bail soon after sentencing.

Wednesday is January 3 and number 3 is said to be bad omen for Lalu Prasad. He was first time convicted in fodder scam case on September 30, 2013, and was awarded five years' imprisonment on October 3, 2013.

Lalu Yadav is at present cooling his heels in Birsa Munda Central Jail in Ranchi.

The CBI court had acquitted another former Bihar Chief Minister Jagannath Mishra and five others in the case, relating to fraudulent withdrawal of Rs. 84.5 lakh from the Deoghar district treasury between 1990 and 1994. Lalu Prasad was the Chief Minister of then undivided Bihar from 1990 to 1997.

The trial in the case was completed on December 13 in the special CBI court and 10 days later, he was convicted on December 23.

There were 34 accused in the case, out of which 11 died during the trial, while one turned CBI approver and admitted to the crime. The 16 convicted people include three former IAS officials Phoolchand Mandal, Beck Julius and Mahesh Prasad.

Lalu Prasad is also facing trial in three more cases relating to the fodder scam, also known as "Chara Ghotala".