Lalu Prasad Yadav sentenced to five years jail term
Ranchi: RJD chief Lalu Prasad was on Thursday sentenced to five years rigorous imprisonment in a corruption case that immediately disqualifies him as MP.
The sentencing by special CBI judge Pravas Kumar Singh of the two-time former chief minister, another former chief minister Jagannath Mishra and sitting JD(U) Jagdish Sharma and other convicts, who are currently lodged in the Birsa Munda Central Jail here, was made through video conferencing.
Mishra (76), who has faded from politics, was sentenced to four years rigorous imprisonment and a fine of Rs two lakh. Lok Sabha member from Jahanabad, Sharma, also faces disqualification in the wake of a Supreme Court judgement that an MP or MLA would lose the seat immediately if convicted by a court for crimes with punishment of two years or more and under some other laws even without jail sentence. In case of failure to pay the fine, the convicts would undergo another six months simple imprisonment.
In the wake of framing charges in the fodder scam case, Prasad had to resign as chief minister of Bihar. After installing his wife Rabri Devi as the chief minister, Yadav had surrendered before a court in Patna on July 31, 1997.
Later, he came to Ranchi following a court order that Ranchi had jurisdiction in the case. The Becon Guest House was converted to a camp jail in Ranchi before he was shifted to the old Birsa Munda Jail at Circular road here.
