A special CBI court on Wednesday deferred the sentencing till Thursday of jailed former Bihar chief minister and RJD chief Lalu Prasad and 15 others in a multi-million-rupee fodder scam case.
The court of Justice Shivapal Singh deferred the sentencing after it was informed about the death of two lawyers by the District Bar Council.
Lalu Prasad was brought to the Central Bureau of Investigation court from Birsa Munda Central Jail here earlier. He was then taken back to the jail.
Ahead of the sentencing, Lalu Yadav's son Tej Pratap said that he hopes for a positive decision. Lalu's lawyer on Tuesday said that they would press for minimum punishment in the case. "Lalu is 70 years old and suffering from many diseases. We will seek minimum punishment for him " he said.
AS IT HAPPENED:
11:24 am: Quantum of sentence for Lalu Yadav, others in a fodder scam case to be pronounced on Thursday.
11:20 am: CBI court summons Raghuvansh Prasad Singh, Tejashwi Yadav and Manoj Jha on January 23
11:10 am: Ranchi Special CBI ourt finds Raghuvansh Prasad Singh, Tejashwi Yadav and Manoj Jha guilty of contempt of court.
11:00 am: Lalu Yadav reaches Ranchi court, quantum of sentence is expected shortly.
10:33 am: Lalu Yadav leaves from Birsa Munda Jail in Ranchi.
10:10 am: Lalu Yadav along with 14 others was on December 23 convicted while seven accused including former Bihar chief minister Jagannath Mishra were acquitted. A special CBI court had acquitted Mishra and others in the case, relating to fraudulent withdrawal of Rs 84.5 lakh from the Deoghar district treasury between 1990 and 1994.
09:48 am: The RJD supremo is also facing trial in three more cases relating to the fodder scam, also known as "Chara Ghotala".
09:30 am: Lalu has been convicted i one of the cases of the fodder scam, wherein Rs 900 crore from the Bihar exchequer were siphoned off under the pretext of purchasing fodder for livestock, during '80s and '90s.
08:34 am: There were 34 accused in the case, out of which 11 died during the trial, while one turned CBI approver and admitted to the crime. The 16 convicted people include three former IAS officials Phoolchand Mandal, Beck Julius and Mahesh Prasad.
