Fodder Scam: Ranchi Court to pronounce verdict in Dumka treasury case at 2 pm, Lalu Yadav to be absent

A special CBI court in Ranchi will pronounce the verdict in the Dumka treasury case, the fourth in the Fodder Scam involving former Bihar chief minister and Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD) chief Lalu Prasad Yadav, on Monday at 2 pm. However, Yadav will not be present at the time of hearing since he is admitted in hospital for three days because of health problems.

The case is related to an alleged withdrawal of Rs 3.13 crore from the Dumka treasury over two decades ago against Lalu Yadav and Jagannath Mishra.

News agency ANI tweeted, “Fodder scam(Dumka) case hearing: Verdict expected to be pronounced at 2 pm today by Ranchi Court, Lalu Yadav will not be present in court as he is unwell and in hospital for the last three days.”

Fodder scam(Dumka) case hearing: Verdict expected to be pronounced at 2 pm today by Ranchi Court, Lalu Yadav will not be present in court as he is unwell and in hospital for the last three days (file pic) pic.twitter.com/cRueXo6Vra

— ANI (@ANI) March 19, 2018

The verdict was to be pronounced on Saturday, but the CBI deferred the case to be heard on Monday. Yadav was admitted to the hospital on Saturday after complaining of chest pain.

Lodged in the Birsa Munda Central Jail, Yadav was rushed to the Rajendra Institute of Medical Sciences (RIMS) for treatment after he had complained of severe chest pain, sources said.

Also Read| Fodder scam: Special CBI court to deliver judgment in fourth case against Lalu Prasad Yadav today

Sources added that the possible reason for the deferment of the case on Saturday was because of Lalu’s deterring health issue.

Currently, Lalu is facing a jail term in the Fodder scam. A special CBI court had sentenced him, along with seven others, to 3.5 years imprisonment and Rs 5 lakh each in the second fodder scam case. The seven others include Phool Chand, Mahesh Prasad, Bake Julious, Sunil Kumar, Sushil Kumar, Sudhir Kumar, and Raja Ram.

A fifth case in relation with the alleged fraudulent withdrawal of Rs 139 crore from the Doranda treasury in Ranchi is still pending.

The total over Rs 9,000-crore Fodder scam cases are related to illegal withdrawal of money from government treasuries in different districts in the animal husbandry department in 1900s in the undivided Bihar when RJD was in power in the state.