RJD supremo caught in tape, fodder shockers
The Supreme Court on Monday dashed the hopes of lalu Prasad when it ruled that the Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD) leader would stand separate trials in four cases relating to the fodder scam. With this, lalu Prasad's short period of relief — less than three years — comes to an end. The Jharkhand High Court had in 2014 ruled that no conspiracy charges were made out against the RJD supremo who has already been convicted in one related case, debarred from contesting elections, and is out on bail. With the apex court setting aside the High Court order, troubles for lalu Prasad are bound to multiply in the coming months, since the Supreme Court has directed the trial court to complete its proceedings in the next nine months. A separate trial for each of the offences effectively means that the RJD leader has no respite even if he, for argument's sake, secures relief in one of the cases; the other three will linger to haunt him. But the more worrying factor for him is that the CBI will not be any longer able to drag its feet and strengthen its arguments more for the sake of formality than with the belief that it needs to nail the accused. The apex court has pulled up the CBI for showing laxity in challenging the High Court's verdict, observing that it ought to have deputed a person specifically for the issue. It's true that the CBI, for whatever reason, had shown less enthusiasm than needed in bringing lalu Prasad to justice. There is no reason for it to cling on to its old ways.
The Supreme Court's order comes at a most inopportune time for the RJD leader. He is already on the backfoot as a result of the public exposure of his taped conversation with Bihar convict and Siwan strongman, Mohammad Shahabuddin. If the audio tapes are to be believed, the two were heard discussing governance matters, with lalu Prasad acceding to the convict's demands. Equally shocking is that Shahabuddin was calling from jail (how did he get access to a phoneIJ) and that lalu Prasad had no hesitation in entertaining his call during which, among other things, the shifting of a Superintendent of Police was discussed. lalu Prasad's links with the muscleman-politician are old and have been a matter of public knowledge. But the audio tapes revealed the RJD leader was functioning over the head of the State's Chief Minister who apparently had not been in the know. The twin developments — the apex court's directive for the conduct of separate trials and the secret tapes — are bound to impact the coalition regime in Bihar, in which the RJD and Chief Minister Nitish Kumar's Janata Dal (United) are partners. Will these strengthen Nitish Kumar's hands vis-à-vis lalu PrasadIJ Will the unease that already exists between the two partners now magnify and lead to a political realignmentIJ These are early days for an answer. What is certain is that lalu Prasad cannot breathe easy. His legal battle has just got more complicated and his prospects of contesting polls are as dim as before.