New Delhi: In a major setback for RJD supremo Lalu Prasad Yadav, the Supreme Court on Monday called for separate trial against former Bihar Chief Minister in the multi-crore fodder scam.
“Lalu Prasad Yadav to face trial in all multi-crore fodder scam cases,” Supreme Court said.
The Supreme Court sets aside Jharkhand High Court order by which trial against Lalu and others stayed after conviction in one of the fodder scam cases.
The Apex Court said, Jharkhand High Court should have been consistent in its findings and should not have given different views for different sets of accused in a case.
The Supreme Court also pulled up CBI for the delay in filing the appeal against the high court order in the case.
The former Bihar chief minister was convicted over the fodder scam and awarded five-year sentence in October 2013, disbarring him from electoral politics. Lalu is currently out on bail.
The Jharkhand High Court had, however, dropped the conspiracy charge against him in one of the cases in 2014, following which the CBI appealed against the move. The top court had reserved its judgment on April 20.
The High Court had ordered that proceedings against him be continued under IPC sections 201 (causing the disappearance of evidence of an offence committed or giving false information) and 511 (attempting to commit offences punishable with imprisonment for life or imprisonment, and in such attempt doing any act towards the commission of the offence).
The charges are in connection with the case pertaining to fraudulent withdrawal of Rs 96 lakh during Lalu’s chief ministerial tenure.
The High Court, however, had dropped IPC 120, 120B, 409, 420, 471, 477, 477A and 13(2) under Prevention of Corruption Act against Prasad, giving him relief under section 300 of the Code of Criminal Procedure Act and Article 22 of the Constitution which states that a person once convicted or acquitted cannot be tried for the same offence again.