SC upholds suspension of Lalu's sentence in Deoghar fodder scam case

The Supreme Court on Tuesday (July 4) refused to interfere with the Jharkhand High Court's order, which suspended the sentence of RJD chief and former Bihar Chief Minister Lalu Prasad Yadav in the Deoghar fodder scam case. Stating that it would be appropriate to hear the criminal appeal, the apex court urged the High Court to decide the matter within six months.

The suspense of Yadav’s sentence was upheld by the bench of Justice MM Sundresh and Justice PB Varale during the hearing of the Special Leave Petition filed by the Jharkhand government challenging the High Court’s July 12, 2019, order on the case.

SC declines to interfere

"Upon hearing the learned counsels, we are not inclined to interfere with the order, particularly since seven years have elapsed since then. The appeals are of the year 2018 and therefore it will only be appropriate to request the High Court to expedite the hearing," stated the bench as quoted by Live Law.

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It further stated that it would be appropriate it would better if the High Court takes a call on the matter in six months.

State challenges relief

Appearing for the State, Additional Solicitor General SV Raju argued that the Jharkhand High Court had wrongly suspended Lalu Prasad Yadav's sentence by proceeding on the erroneous assumption that he had completed half of the imprisonment awarded to him.

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He submitted that Yadav's first two applications for suspension of sentence had been rejected and that the third was allowed only because of an incorrect computation of the sentence undergone.

Raju contended that Section 427 of the Code of Criminal Procedure applied since Yadav's convictions arose from separate fodder scam trials. According to him, a subsequent sentence begins only after the earlier one is completed unless a court directs otherwise.

Arguments on sentence

"The very yardstick applied is wrong," he submitted, arguing that the Deoghar sentence could not be treated as running concurrently with the earlier sentence.

When Justice MM Sundresh enquired about the pending appeal, Raju said it had not been heard and alleged that the delay was attributable to the accused.

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Senior Advocate Kapil Sibal, appearing for Yadav, opposed the State's plea, arguing that Section 427 had no application at the stage of suspension of sentence and that the issue of concurrent or consecutive sentences would arise only at the final hearing.

Taking note of the appeal's pendency since 2018, the Supreme Court declined to interfere and requested the High Court to dispose of the appeal expeditiously.

Background of the case

Yadav was convicted by a CBI court in the Deoghar fodder scam case and sentenced to three-and-a-half years' imprisonment under the IPC and the Prevention of Corruption Act. His earlier applications for suspension of sentence were rejected after the High Court found that he had not completed half of the sentence.

In the third application, he claimed to have crossed that threshold and relied on orders granting similar relief to co-convicts. Accepting the plea, the High Court held that a fresh application was maintainable and suspended his sentence during the pendency of the appeal, while releasing him on bail subject to conditions.