Ranchi: The hearing into the RJD supremo Lalu Prasad’s petition to the Jharkhand High Court challenging his conviction and sentence by a special CBI court in a fodder scam case has been deferred for one week.
The court has directed his counsel Devarshi Mandal to remove defects in the petition and said it will hear the case again on March 11.
The details of the defects in the petition are yet to be known as the proceedings were online.
The ailing leader has also pleaded to the court seeking the suspension of his sentence in the case and that he requires better medical facilities to monitor his health.
Prasad was convicted by a CBI court in Ranchi in the animal husbandary scam pertaining to withdrawal of Rs 139.35 crore from the Doranda treasury. He was sentenced on February 21 to undergo imprisonment for five years and pay a fine of Rs 60 lakh.
The RJD leader had moved the Jharkhand High Court on February 24 challenging his conviction and sentence by a special CBI court here in respect of the withdrawal from the Doranda treasury in the fodder scam case.
Prasad, who was on bail, had surrendered before the CBI court and is in custody since February 15.
The former Bihar chief minister has been shifted to Rajendra Institute of Medical Sciences here for monitoring of his medical condition.
Prasad was convicted for the fifth time in a series of fodder scam cases. While he is on bail granted by Jharkhand High Court in four other cases, the present conviction is in connection with the withdrawals from the Doranda treasury here during 1995-96 when he was the chief minister of erstwhile undivided Bihar.
The fodder scam is pegged at Rs 950 crore. The money was withdrawn from various treasuries through fake challans and bills by the animal husbandary department. Prasad, who was the chief minister at the time, also held the portfolio of the finance department and had allegedly received huge kickbacks.
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