Fodder scam: Jharkhand High Court rejects Lalu Yadav's bail plea

The Jharkhand High Court on Thursday rejected the bail plea of former Bihar chief minister Lalu Prasad Yadav, who is serving a five-year prison sentence in connection with the multi-crore fodder scam case.

The 66-year-old Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD) chief had moved the court on Wednesday, but the latter chose to reserve its order for Thursday after hearing the CBI counsel's objections to granting Lalu bail.

A Special Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) Court in Ranchi had earlier on September 30 convicted Yadav and others in a case of fraudulent withdrawal of Rs. 37.70 crore from Chaibasa treasury in the then undivided Bihar during the RJD regime in the 1990s.

Following his conviction, Yadav has been disqualified from the Lok Sabha. He has been banned from contesting elections for six years.

However, his wife and former Bihar chief minister Rabri Devi had earlier said that this is a conspiracy against her husband who has been framed in this case without any substantial evidence.

"This is a conspiracy against Laluji. The entire world is watching. There is no evidence against him, and this is clearly bad politics. I have full faith in the judiciary, and Laluji will get bail soon," she said.

The fodder scam also known as 'Chara Ghotala' involved the siphoning of funds from the Bihar Government treasury. The alleged theft spanned over several years, and many Bihar state government administrative and elected officials across multiple administrations were allegedly engaged in it.

The fodder scam was unearthed in Bihar in 1996 when Lalu Prasad was the Chief Minister of the state.