Patna/Gaya, May 29: The LJP today demanded dismissal of urban development minister Prem Kumar from the state cabinet claiming that he had been declared an absconder since March 23, 1996 by the Gaya chief judicial magistrate.

Terming chief minister Nitish Kumar’s claims of rule of law in the state a sham, the LJP’s Bihar unit president Pashupathi Kumar Paras said a case was lodged against Prem in July 1991 in the Kotwali police station of Gaya.

“Prem did not mention about this in his affidavit filed while filing the nomination papers for the Assembly elections and a delegation of LJP would soon meet the officials of the Election Commission to demand his disqualification as a member of the Assembly for violation of provisions of People’s Representation Act.”

Rubbishing the allegations levelled by the LJP on the minister, his counsel Mukesh Kumar said: “The minister has procured a stay from Patna High Court in this case, which still holds its validity.”

Giving details of the case in which Prem, who is representing the Gaya Town seat for the past six terms, Mukesh said the minister had been made an accused in a case of unlawful assembly lodged by the police with Kotwali police station in 1991 under sections 147, 323, 337 and 353 of IPC.

The people of Gaya had staged a demonstration at Kotwali police station to protest the killing of a trader. Prem also took part in it. During the demonstration, the police misbehaved with the MLA. Later, then RJD government had transferred the deputy superintendent of police then.