RANCHI: Two aides of former
Bihar CM
Lalu Prasad have been lodged in Ranchi's Birsa Munda Central Jail after they surrendered in an allegedly false case on the same day their boss was convicted of corruption and sent to prison, police said on Tuesday.
Sources said the two plotted to "land in trouble", get themselves incarcerated in the same prison as Lalu, and serve him there.
Madan Yadav, an entrepreneur who owns two cowsheds, a big house and a high-end SUV, is in jail on charges of snatching Rs 10,000 from Sumit Yadav, a Ranchi resident.
He was allegedly helped by his friend
Laxman Yadav, who too is in the same jail. Interestingly, the RJD, while refuting that Laxman and Madan were Lalu aides, admitted both are
RJD workers. "Police should probe how the two got jailed. Laluji never asked anyone to go to jail," said RJD spokesperson Shakti Singh Yadav.
Police had no reason to doubt Sumit when he lodged an FIR against Madan and Laxman on December 23, the day Lalu was convicted in a fodder case by a special CBI court.
Both accused Madan and Laxman surrendered before the CJM's court and were sent to Birsa Munda Central Jail the same day.
But people who know Madan in Ranchi grew suspicions when he suddenly went missing and was later learnt to be in jail. Manoj Kumar, a tea-seller who knows Madan, said he was surprised. "Madan is wellconnected with sound financial background. He has no reason to snatch or steal," he said, adding that Madan must have gone to jail to serve the RJD boss. Police began probing the intent behind the complaint and the surrender after it came to be known that Madan has been a known Lalu retainer and has been serving him whenever he's in Ranchi. Laxman has served as Lalu's cook in the past. In other words, both know Lalu, sources said.
On Tuesday, police decided to probe the December 23 snatching and surrender. A senior police officer said: "We weren't aware that the two surrendered before the court and were sent to jail.
The usual practice is that lawyers concerned ask for documentary evidence — police station diary and the FIR — before taking a decision in such matters. However, in this case none of these norms was followed." SSP Kuldeep Dwivedi on Tuesday instituted an investigation into the matter.
