Lalu's brother-in-law Sadhu Yadav accused of extortion

Sadhu Yadav, a former MP involved in several criminal cases, is in trouble again after a complaint was registered against him for allegedly demanding money from a builder here, the police said on Thursday.

In his complaint lodged at Kotwali police station here, builder Anil Singh said Sadhu Yadav, estranged brother-in-law of RJD chief Lalu Prasad, had demanded Rs.50 lakh from him as extortion money, said a police official.

Sadhu Yadav, who has already been involved in several cases of extortion, assault, forgery and other crimes, has denied the charge.

Interestingly, Anil Singh, who himself is absconding after being accused in several criminal cases, took the help of his manager in filing the complaint against Sadhu.

In his complaint, Anil Singh said Sadhu Yadav had threatened him with dire consequences if he failed to pay up.

Sadhu Yadav, brother-in-law of Lalu Prasad and a former member of the Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD), enjoyed great clout during the Lalu-Rabri rule in Bihar from 1990 to 2005.

He later fell out with his brother-in-law Lalu Yadav and sister Rabri Devi and left the party.

"Lalu and Rabri's residence has been closed for Sadhu and practically they had no connection left at all," an RJD leader told IANS.

The RJD is a constituent of the Grand Alliance that came to power in Bihar last November. Janata Dal-United (JD-U) and the Congress are the other constituents of the coalition government led by Nitish Kumar.

JD-U leaders said Sadhu Yadav has no connection with the Grand Alliance and that the law will take its own course in the case of extortion against him.

Sadhu Yadav has also been an accused in the multi-crore flood relief forgery scam in Bihar.