Guwahati: In the 139-crore fodder scam case, a special court of the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) in Ranchi sentenced Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD) leader Lalu Prasad Yadav to five years in prison and fined Rs 60 lakh on Monday.
On February 15, the RJD supremo was found guilty in the case, and the sentence was set to be handed out today. The CBI court convicted Yadav guilty of illicit withdrawals from the Doranda treasury of Rs 139.35 crore.
Following his conviction last week, the ailing 73-year-old veteran politician was transferred from Hotwar jail to the Rajendra Institute of Medical Sciences (RIMS) in Ranchi. He had previously been sentenced to 14 years in prison in four other cases involving the treasuries of Dumka, Deoghar, and Chaibasa in Jharkhand.
Yadav’s counsel previously stated that the senior leader would attend the hearing via videoconference on Monday. He was present in court when the verdict was announced last Tuesday.
In the Doranda treasury scam case, a total of 170 people have been listed as suspects. 55 have died, seven have become government witnesses, six have fled the country, and two have agreed to the charges levelled against them. Last Thursday, the CBI court handed down its decision on the remaining 99 suspects, including Yadav.