RJD chief Lalu Prasad Yadav and Congress leader Jagannath Mishra, both former chief ministers of undivided Bihar facing trial in the biggest case in the Rs 950-crore fodder scam, appeared in a special CBI court in Jharkhand capital Ranchi for getting their statements recorded on Tuesday.
Both leaders, who had been stalwarts in Bihar politics earlier, were among 42 accused who were asked to appear in the court after it finished recording the statements of 350 prosecution witnesses in the case. The duo denied all the charges being assiduously pressed against them by the CBI in the case (RC 20A/96) that involves fraudulent withdrawal of Rs 37 crore from the treasury at Chaibasa in Jharkhand’s West Singhbhum district in the 1990s. Mr Yadav is the main accused in five of the 53 fodder scam cases, including this one.
In the court of judge Pravas Kumar Singh, Mr Yadav faced 28 questions while Mr Mishra, who was Bihar chief minister before Mr Yadav replaced him in 1990, faced nine questions, said sources.