Former MLA,murder convict and still making crime news

Munna Shukla,serving life term for ministers murder,now accused of extortion attempt from jail

Vijay Kumar Shukla,better known as Munna Shukla,is not new to controversy in Bihar. The latest one comes even while the former JDU MLA is in jail,serving a life sentence for a ministers murder. Now,he has allegedly used the partys name while seeking to extort Rs 7 crore from Santlal Yadav,director of Patna Sahib Group of Colleges in Bhagwanpur Vaishali.

Shukla and his brothers,Chhotan and Bhutkun,residents of Chanjahachak village in Lalganj,Vaishali,were close to Anand Mohan,a Rajput leader and former MP from the Kosi belt,and now serving a life term in connection with the 1994 murder of G Krishnaiah,the then Gopalganj district magistrate.

It was this murder that first brought Munna Shukla into public focus. His elder brother Chhotan had been murdered and a mob was protesting when they turned their anger on the district magistrate,who happened to be passing by. Munna Shukla,who was made an accused in the case,was convicted by a lower court and later acquitted by the Supreme Court.

In June 1998,RJD minister Brijbihari Prasad was shot dead at Patnas Indira Gandhi Institute of Medical Sciences where he was undergoing treatment. Munna Shukla and over half a dozen others were made accused in the case. The motive was cited as revenge,with Brijbihari Prasad alegedly having been involved in the murder of Chhotan Shukla. Munna Shukla was convicted in 2009 and awarded a life sentence. Prasads wife Rama Devi is a BJP MP from Sheohar.

Shukla had become an Independent MLA for the first time in 2000,from Lalganj constituency. This was after an unsuccessful election attempt by Chhotan Shuklas wife.

Ahead of the 2005 elections,Munna Shukla joined the LJP and won again from Lalganj. With the LJP opting not to lend its numbers to any government,Presidents rule was imposed,ruining Shuklas hopes of becoming a minister. He fell out with LJP chief Ramvilas Paswan. By the time fresh elections were held,he was in the JDU. He won Lalganj a third straight time.

Shukla has faced 17 criminal cases. Even after the ministers murder caught up with him,he retained his hold over Lalganj and other parts of Vaishali. The JDU fielded him from Vaishali in the 2009 Lok Sabha elections,which he contested from jail as an undertrial,finishing a close second to the RJDs Raghuvansh Prasad Singh. After his conviction,he was no longer eligible to contest the 2010 Assembly polls and the JDU gave the Lalganj ticket to his wife,Anu Shukla,who won the seat comfortably.

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After the fresh controversy,Chief Minister Nitish Kumar has said police would take strong action if the allegations against Shukla were found true. RJD chief Lalu Prasad has alleged the JDU had asked its leaders and even police officers to arrange money illegally for its Adhikar rally. The complainant,Santlal Yadav,met Lalu on Monday and urged him to put pressure on the state government.

Of the two numbers from which the extortion calls were made,police have confirmed,one belonged to Shukla. Additional DGP Gupteshwar Pande Tirhut range said preliminary investigations showed that both calls,on October 26 and 27,had been traced to Muzaffarpur jail where Shukla is serving his life term.

Shukla won a Ph D while in jail. After former Siwan MP Mohammed Sahabuddin and Tarari MLA Sunil Pandey,he became the third politician to receive a Ph D. His research subject was expression of political awareness in Hindi novels.