Dumka treasury case: RJD chief Lalu Prasad Yadav’s bail plea deferred till November 27

Jharkhand high court deferred till November 27 RJD chief Lalu Prasad's bail plea hearing in a fodder scam case as CBI yet to file its counter, said lawyer

Jharkhand high court deferred bail plea of Rashtriya Janata Dal president Lalu Prasad in the case pertaining to the fraudulent withdrawal of Rs 3.13 crore from Dumka treasury till November 27.

“Lalu Prasad has served over half of the jail term in the case, so we had applied for bail but CBI deliberately did not file counter affidavit in the case and the court asked CBI to file it by November 23 so that the case could be heard on November 27,” Prabhat Kumar, Prasad’s lawyer was quoted by The Hindu.

Prasad was convicted in the Dumka (Jharkhand) treasury case and was awarded five years’ jail term.

“CBI deliberately delaying Lalu Prasad’s bail plea hearing in Dumka treasury case,” lawyer Kapil Sibal told the high court.

Prasad was convicted in four out of total five cases and had got bail in three cases in the multi-crore fodder scam cases in Jharkhand.

In October, the Jharkhand high court in Chaibasa treasury case (RC 68 (a) / 1996) granted bail to Lalu as he had served half of the jail term.

Currently Prasad is undergoing treatment at the Rajendra Institute of Medical Sciences for multiple diseases. Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, he is housed at Kelly Bungalow on the hospital premises.

The RJD chief has been at the Birsa Munda central jail of Jharkhand since December 2017 after being convicted in the fodder scam cases.

There were high expectations in the party circles that Prasad would get bail in the Dumka treasury case and be released from jail.