Patna: A lawmaker from Jharkhand state has been sentenced to three years in jail for stealing coal in what seems to be really a bad time for Indian politicians. This comes barely a week after Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD) president Lalu Prasad was convicted in two separate fodder scam cases.
Yogendra Mahato who is a lawmaker from main opposition Jharkhand Mukti Morcha (JMM) was handed out punishment by the court of sub-divisional judicial magistrate, Ramgarh, Arti Mala on Wednesday in an eight-year-old case of coal theft.
The sentencing not only costs his House membership but has also disqualified him for contesting any elections in the next one decade.
Mahato who represents Gomia seat in the Jharkhand state assembly was booked by the Ramgarh police in 2010 after a huge quantity of illegally-mined coal was recovered from his two hard-coke washeries that he own. Later the charge-sheet filed by the police also proved the charges of coal theft against the lawmaker.
He is the second lawmaker from Jharkhand state to lose his House membership for their involvement in crime and corruption. Earlier All Jharkhand Students Union (AJSU) lawmaker Kamal Kishore Bhagat had lose his membership after he was served seven years imprisonment in an attempt to murder case two years back. Bhagat was convicted for barging into the clinic of a leading neurophysician Dr KK Sinha and assaulting with the intention to kill him after he refused to donate money for his party.
The present time doesn’t seem to be favouring the politicians. Last month, RJD chief Prasad was convicted in two separate fodder scam cases by special Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) courts after which he was sentenced to three-and-a-five years and five years jail terms respectively. The RJD chief is currently lodged Birsa Munda Central Jail in Ranchi, the capital city of Jharkhand. The trial in three more fodder scam cases pending against him too has picked up momentum and judgements are expected in those cases soon. However, the Jharkhand high court is to hear his bail petition tomorrow on (February 2).
