Life term for suspended BJP leader in abduction-murder case

A local court today awarded life sentence to suspended BJP leader Jitendra Swamy in connection with a case of abduction and murder of a man 16 years ago.
Additional District and Sessions Judge Awadhesh Kumar Dubey also slapped a fine of Rs 20,000 on Swamy, failing which he would have to serve another six months in jail.
The court had on August 11 convicted Swamy after finding him guilty for abduction and murder of Bharat Singh, brother of Damodar Singh who was the JD(U) candidate from Maharajganj assembly seat in 2000.
Bharat Singh was abducted on February 15, 2000 and his body recovered two days later following which the victim's kin had lodged an FIR against Swamy charging him with the murder of the former.

Swamy had been acquitted by a lower court in 2012, but the victim's kin then challenged the order in the Patna High Court which ordered re-trial of the case.
He had unsuccessfully contested the bypoll held for Maharajganj Lok Sabha seat on Congress ticket in 2013 following the death of his father Uma Shankar Singh, who was a sitting RJD MP from the parliamentary constituency.

He later joined the BJP and again unsuccessfully contested from Daraunda assembly seat in 2015.
Swamy was suspended by the party the day he was convicted in the case, Bihar BJP's chief spokesman Vinod Narayan Jha told PTI.

Jha said that party would take further action in view of Swamy being awarded life sentence in a murder case.