Lalu Prasad Yadav has secured major relief from the Supreme Court in the Deoghar treasury fodder scam case, with the top court refusing to cancel his bail for now. The court also declined CBI's request to stay the Jharkhand High Court order that had granted him bail.
What the Deoghar treasury case is about
The fodder scam is a long-running case from Bihar involving large-scale fraud in the disbursement of government funds meant for cattle fodder. Lalu Prasad Yadav has already been convicted in several cases linked to this scam. The Deoghar treasury case is one of these matters, in which the Jharkhand High Court had earlier granted him bail.
What CBI asked the Supreme Court to do
The investigating agency was not satisfied with that bail order. CBI filed a petition in the Supreme Court challenging the Jharkhand High Court's decision to grant Lalu Prasad Yadav bail in the Deoghar fodder scam case. The agency sought cancellation of his bail and a stay on the High Court's order.
What the Supreme Court decided
The Supreme Court declined CBI's demand. As a result, the bail granted to Lalu Prasad Yadav by the Jharkhand High Court in the Deoghar treasury case will remain in place, meaning he will not have to return to jail in this matter for now.
Yadav's activities while out on bail
Despite being convicted in the fodder scam, Lalu Prasad Yadav remains out on bail. A Ranchi court had earlier permitted him to travel to Singapore. The Supreme Court had also scheduled a hearing on CBI's plea to cancel his bail for April 22 this year, following which the latest order has now come.
A separate case involving the family
A different case involving Lalu Prasad Yadav's family, the land for job scam, has also been in the news recently, with legal pressure mounting on Tejashwi Yadav after a chargesheet was filed. However, this is a separate matter from the Deoghar treasury case and is not directly connected to the Supreme Court's latest order.
What happens next
With the Supreme Court rejecting CBI's plea, Lalu Prasad Yadav's bail in the Deoghar treasury fodder scam case stays intact for now. Attention will remain on how the legal proceedings unfold from here.
