Operation to attach ex-minister Manju Verma's properties ends

The Bihar Police Sunday concluded its two-day operation to attach properties of former state minister Manju Verma, who's evading arrest in an Arms Act case filed by the CBI while probing the Muzaffarpur shelter home scandal.

The exercise to attach Verma's property in Arjuntola village on Sunday was led by Sub-Divisional Police Officer (SDPO) Suryadeo Kumar.

Police attached 16 articles on Sunday, while 109 articles were seized on Saturday, the SDPO said.

Armed with a court order, a police team led by Superintendent of Police Awakash Kumar had initiated the process of attaching Verma's property in Arjuntola village here on Saturday.

Police had handed over a list of the seized articles to Verma's brother-in-law, Hemant Verma, on Saturday.

"The operation to attach the property of Manju Verma in the Arjuntola area ended on Sunday," the SDPO said.

Police had removed the grill, doors, door frames of a house belonging to her while carrying out the attachment process on Saturday.

All articles inside the house were seized during the two-day operation- initiated under sections 82 and 83 of the Criminal Procedure Code.

Verma had stepped down as the minister for social welfare in August, following reports that her husband, Chandrashekhar Verma, had close links with Brajesh Thakur, the prime accused in the Muzaffarpur shelter home scandal.

Over 30 girls were allegedly raped at the shelter home.

A few days later, the CBI raided Verma's Patna residence besides her in-laws' home in Arjuntola village from where a cache of ammunition was seized. A case was then registered against her.

She moved an application for anticipatory bail before a Begusarai court which was turned down and a similar plea was rejected by the Patna High Court.

Her husband surrendered before a Begusarai court on October 29.

The Supreme Court had on November 12 rapped the Bihar Police for failing to arrest the former minister and directed the DGP to appear before it in person on November 27 if she was not nabbed by then.

Police are conducting raids in Bihar and Jharkhand to arrest Verma, who has been evading arrest for over a month and has been proclaimed an "absconder".

On November 15, the JD(U) suspended Verma from the party's primary membership.

Bihar Director General of Police K S Dwivedi on Friday said the police are making "tremendous efforts" to arrest her.