With the Supreme Court on Thursday rejecting the Bihar government's right to appeal against the acquittal of Rashtriya Janata Dal chief Lalu Prasad in the disproportionate assets case, the Bharatiya Janata Party demanded that the Central Bureau of Investigation file an appeal.
Party spokesperson Ravi Shankar Prasad said: “We do not want to comment on the Supreme Court. However, we do feel that the trial court's judgment of acquittal in the case was most vulnerable in law and the CBI must appeal against it.”
He said the CBI had, in fact, wanted to appeal against the trial court verdict, but “some legal advisers in Delhi” were against the appeal, and, therefore, no appeal was filed.
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It was only because the CBI did not appeal against the acquittal verdict that the Bihar government decided to appeal in the Patna High Court. The Supreme Court on Thursday ruled that the State government did not have the right to appeal.
The Apex Court's ruling comes just months ahead of crucial Assembly polls in Bihar. The BJP fears that the ruling coalition in the State, of which it is a part along with the Janata Dal (United), will not be able to exploit the assets case politically during the election.