Jagannath Mishra denied bail in fodder scam

The Central Bureau of Investigation court denied bail to veteran Congress leader and former Bihar chief minister Jagannath Mishra on Thursday in the case relating to his alleged involvement in the multi-million fodder scam.

Besides one former Union minister and two former state ministers of cabinet rank, Mishra is the second former chief minister to have been denied bail by the special court.

While two former ministers, Vidya Sagar Nishad and Bhola Ram Toofani, and Union minister Chandradev Prasad Verma were in prison, Laloo Prasad Yadav was admitted to a high-profile ward of the Indira Gandhi Institute of Medical Sciences in Patna following serious cardiac problems.

Mishra, who is already on anticipatory bail from the Patna high court, was given one week's time by the special judge Sudhanshu Kumar Lal to file an appeal in the higher court.

CBI prosecutor L R Ansari on Thursday opposed the bail petition, claiming Mishra gave patronage and protection to the other accused. Mishra, he said, also received illegal gratification from the others as had been recorded in the confessional statement of Depesh Chandak, an accused in the fodder scam. The CBI advocate cited several judgments of the Supreme Court and the high court and said this was direct evidence against Mishra. He alleged that Mishra also tried to scuttle special cases of the vigilance department.

Mishra, Ansari said, had written letters twice to the then state chief minister Laloo Prasad Yadav for probes against the purchase committee and not against the animal and husbandry department officials in irregularities during purchase of fodder at Ranchi.

He said irregularities to the tune of Rs 26,000 were traced by the auditor to one of Mishra's relatives, K N Jha, former regional director, AHD, Ranchi. Mishra was trying to protect Jha, the CBI counsel said.

Ansari said Mishra also tried to scuttle a case in which irregularities to the tune of Rs 188.2 million were recorded. Mishra had written to the chief minister for extension to S B Sinha, one of the main accused, even after knowing the charges of irregularities against him.