SC to decide bail pleas of Laloo, Mishra, on Nov 27

While granting the CBI time till Tuesday, the bench directed the investigating agency to submit in a sealed cover, all the material against each accused in the fodder scam conspiracy cases.

The other accused, Chandra Deo Prasad Verma, R K Rana and Vidya Sagar Nishad, have approached the court along with Yadav and Mishra, challenging the November 10 Patna High Court order rejecting their bail pleas.

Senior advocate Kapil Sibal, appearing for Laloo Yadav, requested thecourt for an early hearing, saying the accused were leaders of political parties and were required to campaign for the ensuing Assembly polls.

However, the bench said because of preoccupations, it would not be possible for the court to hear the matter before November 27.

In his special leave petition (SLP), Mishra said he was granted bail by the Supreme Court in a fodder scam conspiracy case on October 13, 1997.

He alleged that CBI had arrested him in another conspiracy case, where the charges and the material relied upon were the same as in the previous case.

Yadav, in his SLP, termed the CBI re-arresting him as politically motivated, while Mishra has pleaded for bail on medical grounds as well.

Mishra said in his SLP that two of his arteries had angioplasty performed on them, and the doctors have advised that if the angioplasty develops a snag, he might have to undergo bypass surgery.

On November 10, the Patna High Court rejected bail pleas of Yadav and Mishra, former ministers Vidya SagarNishad and C P Verma and Rashtriya Janata Dal Member of the Legislative Assembly R K Rana, in a conspiracy case of the fodder scam.

The HC had said in its order that in view of the gravity of charges and documentary evidence, prima facie involvement of the accused was made out in the conspiracy, that resulted in irregular withdrawals from the Treasury by the State Animal Husbandry Department.