Lalu Prasad to SC: CBI's plea against bail is misconceived, meritless, and deserve to be rejected

In an affidavit, Lalu’s contended that the petition "under response seeks to challenge a bail order suspending the sentence on the ground that half the period of the sentence has been spent in custody, which by its very nature is a discretionary order and ought not to be interfered with only if the conditions of bail have been violated". -- Reports ETV Bharat's Sumit Saxena.

New Delhi: Former Bihar chief minister Lalu Prasad Yadav has opposed the CBI appeal in the Supreme Court challenging a Jharkhand High Court order granting bail to him in a fodder scam case. Prasad said the contentions put forth by CBI are "patently erroneous, misconceived, and meritless, and deserve to be rejected by this court”.

In an affidavit, Lalu’s contended that the petition "under response seeks to challenge a bail order suspending the sentence on the ground that half the period of the sentence has been spent in custody, which by its very nature is a discretionary order and ought not to be interfered with only if the conditions of bail have been violated".

The RJD chief said the CBI's plea against the Jharkhand High Court's order ignored the settled position of law, which required "overwhelming circumstances are necessary to reverse an order granting bail". “The order suspending the operation of the sentence and granting the respondent bail after suspending the sentence arising out of Fodder Scam Case….ought not to be set aside on the ground that the petitioner is dissatisfied with the discretion of the High Court of Jharkhand at Ranchi in granting bail," said Lalu’s plea, adding that he had been in custody for a period of 30 months.

The plea said the decision to suspend a sentence because an appeal is unlikely to be heard within a reasonable time, is not an "erroneous" order that merits interference by this court under its discretionary jurisdiction. “The Respondent respectfully submits that the above contentions put forth by the Petitioner are patently erroneous, misconceived and meritless and deserve to be rejected by this Hon'ble Court….”, said Lalu’s plea.

Yadav said he has been undergoing treatment for different life-threatening ailments and has also undergone a kidney transplant on December 5 2022 in Singapore wherein he was strongly advised to take precautions otherwise it may turn fatal. “Furthermore, placing reliance on a chart to indicate period spent in hospital after conviction is wholly mischievous. The Respondent has had to undergo very serious surgery, namely a kidney transplant on December 5th 2022, and also developed UTI”, said Prasad’s plea.

Prasad urged the apex court not to interfere with the order suspending the sentence of the respondent on the basis of acceptable uniform principles and precedents set by this court and the courts below. Prasad also pointed out the High Court of Jharkhand as a uniform rule, which has particularly been followed in cases arising out of the fodder scam, has been suspending a sentence of conviction if an accused has spent half the period of sentence in custody without the appeal against the order of conviction being finally heard.

The top court is likely to hear CBI’s plea seeking cancellation bail granted to Prasad on August 25. The central agency has approached the apex court against the Jharkhand High Court’s April 22, 2022 order granting bail to Yadav in the case. The Jharkhand High Court had granted bail to Lalu Prasad in the Doranda Treasury case, related to the fodder scam, in which a CBI special court had sentenced him to five years in prison.

74-year-old Yadav is presently temporarily out on bail because of ill health after his conviction in different fodder scam cases.