Major Relief for Lalu Yadav! Supreme Court Dismisses CBI Plea to Cancel Bail in Fodder Scam:

In a significant legal development, the Supreme Court of India has delivered a major sigh of relief to Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD) supremo Lalu Prasad Yadav. A bench comprising Justices MM Sundaresh and PB Varale declined to interfere with the previous order of the Jharkhand High Court which had granted bail to the veteran politician in connection with the multi-crore fodder scam cases. While refusing the Central Bureau of Investigation’s (CBI) plea to revoke the bail, the apex court has directed the High Court to expedite the pending appeals and endeavor to conclude the hearings within six months.

Supreme Court Declines CBI Intervention

During the court proceedings, Additional Solicitor General SV Raju, representing the CBI, strongly contested the relief granted to the RJD leader. The CBI argued that the Jharkhand High Court had allegedly miscalculated the actual prison term served by Yadav, contending that the sentences were consecutive rather than concurrent and therefore the 50 percent custody criteria was incorrectly applied. On the other side, senior advocate Kapil Sibal, appearing for Lalu Yadav, defended the High Court’s decision, emphasizing that granting bail fell well within the judicious discretion of the trial judge after the accused had spent a substantial period behind bars.

Directives for Expedited Hearings in High Court

Refusing to entertain the cancellation plea, the bench noted that the underlying appeal dated back to 2018 and keeping the legal questions open for future determination, it disposed of the present matter. The apex court underscored that the most appropriate course of action now is to urge the High Court to fast-track the final arguments and wrap up the pending appeals within the stipulated six-month window, bringing a temporary halt to this long-standing legal battle surrounding the fodder scam convictions.