Patna, May 22: Manmohan Singh may be reputed for his honesty and integrity, but his ministry contains three Bihar politicians facing serious criminal and corruption charges.
Rashtriya Janata Dal chief Laloo Prasad Yadav, Mohammad Taslimuddin and Jai Prakash Narayan Yadav are the three tainted ministers out of the 11 sworn in from the state today.
Laloo Prasad, who has spent time in jail, had to quit as Bihar chief minister in 1997 and appoint wife Rabri Devi in his place after he faced charges in the multi-crore fodder scam cases, six of which are under trial.
Bihar’s most famous political couple is also chargesheeted in a case of amassing assets disproportionate to their known sources of income.
The RJD chief faces charges under several provisions of the Indian Penal Code and the Prevention of Corruption Act, 1988. According to the mandatory affidavit Laloo Prasad had to file before the Election Commission, he is charged with “conspiracy to protect scamsters and providing them protective umbrella and misuse of power as public servant”. These cases were filed against him in 1996, compelling him to quit as chief minister the next year.
Taslimuddin, the RJD MP from Kishanganj, faces nine criminal cases, including three counts of attempt to murder besides charges under the Arms Act and the Explosive Substances Act. The MP, who served in the Rabri government, had to quit as minister in the H.D. Deve Gowda government at the Centre because of the criminal cases he was facing.
Jai Prakash, another RJD MP who has served time in a corruption case, has been appointed minister of state in the Manmohan government. The MP from Munger is facing charges in the B.Ed college scandal, as well as under several sections of the IPC and the Prevention of Corruption Act.
Jai Prakash, who was Bihar higher education minister, was charged with granting temporary recognition to a Kati- har-based minority teachers’ training college that did not fulfil eligibility norms. He was compelled to quit.
The National Democratic Alliance in Bihar has objected to the trio being appointed ministers because there has been no “qualitative difference” in their legal standing from the time they had to quit public office. All three are also facing charges under Section 420, which relates to fraud and cheating.
Laloo Prasad’s close associate, Rajya Sabha MP Prem Shankar Gupta, who is believed to be managing RJD finances, has been appointed a minister of state.
The inclusion of Ram Vilas Paswan, the sole representative of the Lok Janshakti Party, which won four seats, was expected. As was the appointment of Congress leader Meira Kumar, who won the Sasaram seat with an impressive margin. Meira, who was made a cabinet minister, is the daughter of one-time Congress stalwart Jagjivan Ram.
RJD MP from Arrah, Kanti Singh, is another woman politician to be appointed minister.
