Jharkhand HC defers Lalu Prasad Yadav's bail plea to February in Fodder scam

In yet another disappointment for RJD supremo Lalu Prasad Yadav, the Jharkhand High Court on Friday deferred his bail plea hearing once again to February 19. The bail hearing is with regards to the Dumka treasury embezzlement case, a part of the fodder scam cases, pertaining to the fraudulent withdrawal of Rs 3.5 crores from the Dumka treasury by Animal Husbandry Department officials between 1991 and 1996 when Lalu was the State's chief minister.

Lalu, who had been in prison since December 2017, was sentenced to seven years imprisonment in 2018 under the Indian Penal Code (IPC) and seven years under the Prevention of Corruption Act in connection with the fodder scam case.

He had already acquired bail in three cases of over Rs 900 crore fodder scam and submitted his bail plea for Dumka treasury case. The RJD chief, who has not been keeping well was airlifted to All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS) in Delhi from Ranchi on January 23. The State Medical Board in Jharkhand had referred the RJD chief, who was admitted to Rajendra Institute of Medical Sciences (RIMS) in Ranchi, for further treatment at AIIMS. According to ANI, Dr Umesh Prasad, Lalu's physician had said last month that Yadav's kidney was functioning at 25% capacity and his situation could take a turn for the worse.

Jharkhand High Court on February 5 had issued a show-cause notice to the director of Rajendra Institute of Medical Sciences for not submitting the health report of jailed RJD leader after which the court deferred the hearing to February 12. The court observed that the report is vital to ascertain the reason behind shifting Prasad to Delhi's AIIMS on January 23.

Desperate attempts by Tej Pratap

Meanwhile, in a desperate attempt for timely release of Lalu, his elder son and RJD MLA Tej Pratap Yadav on Thursday sent 50,000 'Azadi Patras' to President Ram Nath Kovind, requesting to release his father from jail. While addressing the media, the RJD leader stated that he has collected these letters from followers of Lalu Prasad Yadav and the campaign will continue until Lalu's release.

"We are collecting these letters written by followers of Lalu Ji from Bihar and India. This campaign will continue until he is released. I will request President to give time to meet me," Tej said.

(ANI inputs)

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