Rashtriya Janata Dal leader Lalu Yadav’s conviction is the biggest news of the passing year. A CBI court has found him and 14 others guilty of corruption in a case related to the Fodder Scam. His son Tejashwi Yadav called the case ‘a tragedy of errors’ while the Union Law Minister Ravi Shankar Prasad has maintained that the law catches up if one is involved in corruption.
Lalu tweeted, “Na jor chalega latthi ka, Lalu laal hai maati ka.” (The violence of the stick shall not work. Lalu is a son of the soil.) He will perhaps now follow inspirational ideas for convincing himself that he is actually now comfortable within the four walls.
Being a strong leader of Bihar, his political position has always been of utmost importance. However, after Janata Dal (United) JD (U) dumped his party, it was evident that he would have to discover his political grip once again. It is the ninth time that he has been sent to jail. This particular case, for which he has been jailed, is related to ₹85 lakh being siphoned off from the Deoghar district treasury between 1994 and 1996.
The CBI seemed to have insisted that the loot continued owing to Lalu’s inaction while the RJD insisted that the CBI overlooked other pieces of evidence. The RJD leader got charged in several cases related to the scam, in which around ₹1000 crore were embezzled from the state exchequer for fictitious medicines and fodder for cattle for over a period of 20 years. The CBI started probing the case in the year 1996.
Lalu’s sudden disappearance from the political scene somehow weakens the Congress party as a political vacuum has been created in the country. Some analysts pointed out that he emerged stronger after his earlier jail terms. The ruling combination will certainly move ahead in strengthening its position so long as Lalu’s absence exists in state politics.
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