Patna High Court on Monday quashed the charges framed by a Biharsharif lower court against RJD MLA Raj Ballabh Prasad, who is accused of raping a minor.

The single bench of Acting Chief Justice Iqbal Ahmed Ansari quashed the charges on the ground that the accused was not provided with police papers as is mandatory under Section 207 of the CrPC.

The RJD strongman is accused of raping a 15-year-old from Nalanda district at his English Pathra village house in Nawada district on February 6. An FIR was lodged on February 9.

The MLA had stated in his writ petition filed in the high court that he was not given due time to contest the chargesheet filed by the police on April 22.

Shashi Bhushan Prasad Singh, additional district and sessions judge (I), Biharsharif, had on June 6 framed charges against Raj Ballabh under sections of the IPC including Section 376 (punishment for rape) and the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences Act, 2012. Charges were also framed against five other accused persons under the Immoral Traffic Prevention Act.

The MLA, who has been suspended by his party, had moved the high court contending that while framing charges he was not provided with police papers that included technical evidences such as call detail records which are vital in a rape case, said additional advocate-general (6) Anjani Kumar, who is representing the state.

Anjani said the technical evidences were not dispensed with as the lower court judge had ordered the evidences be kept in a sealed cover and to produce them only if directed by the court.

Anjani today told the bench of acting chief justice: "It is the presiding judge who is responsible for the violation of the law. As he had ordered to keep the evidences under a sealed cover, the same was not given to the accused."

Justice Ansari observed: "It is a settled law that under Section 207 of the CrPC, you have to provide the technical evidences to the person against whom charges have been framed."

The judge then set aside the charges framed by the lower court, and directed it to frame charges again after giving due opportunity to the accused to defend the charges.

Justice Ansari also ordered to complete the hearing of the case within a year.

Raj Ballabh claimed he was given police papers - including FIR copy, case diary and the survivor's statement recorded under Section 164 of the CrPC - on June 6 morning and the lower court framed charges against him the same day afternoon. Anjani told the court that the police had tried to give him the papers on three previous dates, but he refused to receive them.

Raj Ballabh, who had gone missing after the incident came to light, surrendered before a local court on March 10 fearing confiscation of his properties at several places in the state as he was evading arrest for about a month.

He was a minister in Rabri Devi's cabinet, and was suspended by the party on February 14 after the rape charge.