The Jharkhand CBI court on Tuesday recorded the statements of two former Bihar Chief Ministers, Lalu Prasad and Jagannath Mishra, in the fodder scam, CBI lawyer B.M.P Singh said.
Mr. Prasad is charged in six fodder cases, of which five are registered in Ranchi and one in Patna. Funds meant for cattle feed were misused by politicians and government officials in the scam, which surfaced in the 1990s. Large amounts were withdrawn illegally on the pretext of purchasing fodder.
Mr. Prasad arrived at the CBI court along with Mr. Mishra. Their statements were recorded in the court of Justice P.K. Singh.
As many as 61 cases have been registered in the scam and Mr. Prasad was summoned by the court for the RC 20 A/96 case, according to which there had been a fraudulent withdrawal of Rs.37 crore from the Chibasa district treasury.
Mr. Prasad and Mr. Mishra denied the charges against them and claimed to have been framed. They declared that they performed their duties and never committed any kind of dishonest actions. They appealed to the court to look into the case more carefully.
The case involves 42 accused and the prosecution has already recorded statements of 350 witnesses.
“The RC 20A/96 case is in the final stage and by the end of this year the verdict will be out,” said Mr. Singh.
Till now the CBI court has passed judgments in 40 similar cases related to the fodder scam.
