PATNA: Trouble for Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD) supremo Lalu Prasad seems to be far from over. On Wednesday, charges were framed against him in Bihar's Hajipur court in connection with a case related to violation of election commission's model code of conduct and inflammatory remarks at a public meeting.
Lalu Prasad is currently undergoing treatment at All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS), New Delhi, after being released on bail from Ranchi high court in connection with the Doranda district treasury excess withdrawal case, an off shoot of multi-crore animal husbandry scam in undivided Bihar. Lalu is a named accused in a case lodged with Ganga Bridge police station in Vaishali district.
The case relates to the violation of the model code of conduct and instigating people at a public meeting during assembly polls at Terasia village near Hajipur on September 27, 2015. The case was lodged on the written complaint of then circle officer Niranjan Kumar, who was deployed at the venue of the public meeting as a magistrate. On October 2, 2015, the investigating officer submitted the chargesheet in the case. The court took cognisance on February 11, 2019.
On April 18 this year, Lalu was deposed before the court through a video conferencing system. Though Lalu denied the charges levelled against him, charges were framed by the court on Wednesday. “Now the trial will start in the case,” an assistant public prosecutor said.
Meanwhile, RJD spokesperson Chitranjan Gagan said that Lalu Prasad is likely to visit Patna on April 30. He will be released from AIIMS-Delhi on Thursday and leave for Patna after staying at his eldest daughter Misa Bharti's Delhi residence for a couple of days.