Yet another fodder case conviction

What is the chara ghotala case? What does it mean for the former chief minister’s political career?

The story so far: A special CBI court convicted Rashtriya Janata Dal supremo and former Chief Minister of Bihar, Lalu Prasad, in the ₹139.5 crore Doranda treasury case, the fifth against him in the fodder scam. The case relates to misappropriation of crores of rupees in public money meant for animal husbandry. Mr. Prasad has already been convicted in previous cases related to the scam and is out on bail due to ill health. The 73-year-old politician will be lodged in the Birsa Munda Central Jail in Ranchi after his plea to be admitted to the government-run Rajendra Institute of Medical Sciences was turned down by the court. The RJD leader suffers from a host of health-related issues including renal problems.

Mr. Prasad who was present in the court was immediately taken into custody. The quantum of his punishment is likely to be spelt out on February 21 when arguments will be heard. Special CBI judge S.K. Shashi convicted Mr. Prasad and 74 accused, and acquitted 24 others in the case related to siphoning off of money from the treasury meant for animal husbandry in 1995-1996. The court awarded three years of maximum punishment to 34 accused and imposed fines in the range of ₹20,000 to ₹2 lakh. In all, the CBI had examined 575 witnesses in the case and filed chargesheet against 170 people.

This verdict took over two decades with the charges being framed in 2005; the prosecution evidence was closed in 2019 and the statements of accused persons were recorded in 2020.

The fodder scam, or chara ghotala as it came to be known in popular parlance, involved an elaborate network of officials across the districts of a united South Bihar, withdrawing funds amounting to ₹950 crore from the government treasury after furnishing fictitious bills. The illegal withdrawal of government funds, with the money being shared by the suppliers and government officials in the animal husbandry department, predates Mr. Prasad’s ascendance as Chief Minister of undivided Bihar in 1990, but the fact remains that after assuming charge, the CM did little to stem the rot. The fodder scam involved politicians and bureaucrats siphoning off crores of rupees on the pretext of purchasing livestock feed over a period of 20 years by submitting forged bills.

The scam surfaced in January 1996 after the then Deputy Commissioner Amit Khare raided the offices of the Animal Husbandry Department and seized documents that showed siphoning of funds by non-existent companies in the name of supplying fodder. The breakaway faction of the Janata Dal under Nitish Kumar, and George Fernandes of the Samata Party, too red-flagged the issue. After an FIR was registered, in March 1996, the Patna High Court directed the CBI to probe the scam. The Supreme Court upheld the order. In July 1997, Mr. Prasad resigned as CM and surrendered before a CBI court and was sent to judicial custody. Initially, 63 cases were registered under IPC Sections 420 (forgery) and 120 (b) (criminal conspiracy) and Section 13 (b) of the Prevention of Corruption Act.

With the CBI — and then joint director Upen Biswas —looking into the scandal as ordered by the court, the fodder scam saw the fall of Mr. Prasad, with his conviction on September 30, 2013. Interestingly, another former Chief Minister Jagannath Mishra was also convicted in cases related to the fodder scam. His conviction too came in 2013, but by then the once formidable Mishra had ceased to be relevant in the politics of the State. The fodder scam thus became one of the early cases where sitting legislators were convicted and forced to forfeit their Assembly and parliamentary seats.

Mr. Prasad has already been convicted in the earlier cases related to the fodder scam and has served varied sentences following conviction. The conviction also disqualified him from contesting elections either in the State Assembly or Parliament following a Supreme Court ruling barring convicted candidates from contesting elections for 11 years, thus effectively bringing an end to the political career of one of the most charismatic political leaders post-independence.