17 years on, CBI court convicts Lalu and 44 others in Bihar fodder scam

RJD Chief Could Face A Stiff Jail Term   Ranchi: A CBI court on Monday convicted former Bihar chief minister Lalu Prasad in a fodder scam-related case. The judgment, which has far-reaching political consequences, clears the way for the RJD chief's disqualification from the Lok Sabha and will debar him from contesting elections for possibly as long as 13 years.      In all, 45 people were convicted including another former Bihar CM and former Union minister Jagannath Mishra and several former bureaucrats of Bihar. The verdict is a rare instance of two CMs, that too belonging to rival political parties, convicted in one case: something which underlined the pervasive nature of the scam in which politicians of different stripes connived with bureaucrats to siphon off huge  funds meant for expenses, including provision of fodder, on livestock.      The conviction, which comes at a time when Lalu is struggling to regain his onceformidable influence in Bihar politics, is the second of an important politician after July 10 when the Supreme Court stripped convicted lawmakers of the immunity they enjoyed from disqualification. Earlier, a CBI court had convicted former Union minister Rashid Masood for allegedly trying to influence admissions to medical colleges. Masood's sentence has not been announced.      Although the court said it would announce the quantum of sentence on October 3, it granted bail to all eight persons who were convicted for up to three years in the case of fraudulent withdrawal of Rs 37 crore from Chaibasa treasury: a certain indication that the Rashtriya Janata Dal strongman is in for a bigger sentence. The Representation of People Act, as it stands after the July order of SC, prescribes instant disqualification of politicians who have been convicted for offences punishable with terms of two years or more.      This threatens to be a career-debilitating move for the 66-year-old former CM if he does not win an acquittal from a higher court swiftly enough: a dodgy prospect given the pace of judicial administration. After he has served his term, estimated to be between 5-7 years, Lalu will have to sit out for another six years under the law before he can contest an election.      Considering that the RJD is no longer the force it was and Lalu's appeal has waned since the heady 1990s, the political exile could cause serious trouble for the once-formidable chieftain of Bihar. The sentence can, in the immediate run, energize the party's base, particularly among Yadavs who see the case as an upper caste frame-up.  COULD BE OUT OF POLITICS FOR 13 YRS      RJD chief Lalu Prasad first Lok Sabha MP to be convicted  after Supreme Court's July 2013 order disqualifying MPs, MLAs convicted by any court for crimes with punishment of two years or more      Lalu plus 44 accused, including former Bihar CM Jagannath Mishra, six politicians and four IAS officers, convicted for fraudulent withdrawal of Rs 37.7 crore from Chaibasa treasury      The fodder scam, also called treasury scam, broke in 1996. Nexus of politicos, senior state officers and suppliers siphoned off govt money against inflated and fictitious bills for medicines, fodder for cattle and animal husbandry equipment      Lalu will lose LS seat, become ineligible for contesting elections for at least six years after completion of sentence. If he gets maximum term of 7 yrs, Lalu could end up out of electoral politics for 13 years  WHAT IT MEANS FOR LALU, HIS PARTY, HIS FAMILY      Massive fall in the fortunes of the man who dominated Bihar for a decade and a half. His political career is eclipsed if not terminated. RJD's core Yadav support may rally around in immediate future. But as it is not clear who in his family will take charge, RJD faces a rough passage  FALLOUT IN BIHAR AND DELHI      Congress may intensify efforts to align with JD(U). In Delhi, Congress will be happy with JD(U)'s 20 MPs to RJD's 4. Should help Nitish Kumar pull in more non-Yadav backward and Muslim votes. BJP will hope to gain a share of backward votes. If Congress-JD(U) move closer, Bihar politics can become more bi-polar  RAHUL EFFECT      Rahul Gandhi's attack on the ordinance was intended to retrieve ground for Congress, but Lalu has become its first victim in terms of losing his Lok Sabha seatRJD chief in jail, party faces leadership vacuum  Ranchi: The conviction of Lalu Prasad in the fodder scam could result in the adverse effect of a leadership vacuum in the RJD in the long run, and a strong possibility of Bihar CM Nitish Kumar poaching the support of Muslims. The risk is higher because the succession line is not clear.      There was a moment of stunned silence both inside the special CBI court No. 4 which was packed to capacity with lawyers and Lalu loyalists as well as outside as the news of conviction wafted out around 11.15am. Lalu cited the looming Durga Puja vacation as he pleaded with the judge that he pronounce the sentence on Monday itself so that he could appeal in the high court as well as move for bail. The court, however, expressed its inability to do so since the judgment would go up to 500 pages divided into several parts. "Aap to bhagwan hain,'' Lalu then told the judge, urging him to at least consider doing so.      The order was widely anticipated and had led the former Bihar CM to approach the SC to seek transfer of the case from the court of CBI judge Pravas Kumar Singh by alleging bias, as well as to successfully lobby the UPA government to bring the ordinance designed to save convicted politicians from being unseated. The ordinance was shot down by Rahul Gandhi who called it "nonsense" and rebuked the government for being influenced by political considerations: a code for UPA managers' anxiety to protect Lalu who has been a steadfast Congress ally even before UPA was formed.      The case, RC-20A/96, is part of a bunch of cases CBI took up at the instance of the judiciary which accepted the argument that the state government, then led by Lalu himself, could not be expected get to the bottom of the scam. The investigation was conducted by a team led by U N Biswas, now a minister in the TMC government in West Bengal, which included current CBI chief Ranjit Sinha.      The investigation climaxed in 1997 when the then CBI chief Joginder Singh ordered the registration of a case against the then Bihar CM. It forced Lalu to resign and appoint his wife Rabi Devi, then a homemaker, as his successor. Lalu's arrest shortly afterwards was accompanied by tension as Biswas approached the area commander of the army to deploy troops to deal with any trouble: again acontentious move which was rejected by the local commander.      For the full report, log on to www.timesofindia.com Lalu Prasad arrives at the special CBI court in Ranchi The conviction was widely anticipated and had led the former Bihar CM to approach the SC to seek transfer of the case