By IANS
Ranchi : A special Central Bureau Investigation (CBI) court Friday convicted 11 people in a case related to the fodder scam in which millions of rupees were embezzled from the treasury of undivided Bihar.
Judge Manoranja Kavi convicted 11 people in case Rc77/96 involving the fraudulent withdrawal of Rs.5.5 million from the Godda treasury of present day Jharkhand.
There were a total 15 accused. One died during trial, two were acquitted and one turned approver. The remaining were convicted Friday. The sentences will be pronounced by the CBI court June 12.
Of the 11 convicted, five are government officials and the rest are suppliers. Among those convicted is Om Prasad Diwakar, the then regional director of the Animal Husbandry Department (AHD).
The multimillion-rupee fodder scam surfaced in 1996 and the investigation was handed over to the CBI at the order of the Patna High Court. A total of 63 cases were registered in the scam and 41 were transferred to Jharkhand after it was carved out of Bihar in November 2000.
The CBI has filed a charge sheet in almost every case and trial is under progress. Till now the special CBI court has passed judgment in 17 cases and nearly 220 accused in different cases have been awarded punishment of two to seven years imprisonment.
Railway Minister Lalu Prasad and former Bihar chief minister Jagganth Mishra are accused in five cases.