Congress claims Lalu's Lok Sabha disqualification will 'send strong signal, help cleanse politics'

Congress Party leader Rashid Alvi on Tuesday welcomed the decision to disqualify Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD) chief Lalu Prasad Yadav from the Lok Sabha, and said that it would send a strong signal to corrupt politicians and cleanse the country’s political system.

"This is the law of the country. Anyone who gets convicted in such a scam will have to face the consequences, irrespective of the person being a lawmaker or a legislator. The procedure is such that the convicted person's membership is cancelled in the Parliament,” Alvi said.

“ I think this will send a strong signal to the corrupt politicians and help cleanse our political system," he added.

Lalu has been disqualified from the Lok Sabha after being convicted in the multi-crore fodder scam case. He has been banned from contesting elections for six years.

Janata Dal (United) MP Jagdish Sharma, who also has been convicted in this case, has also been disqualified.

A Special Central Bureau of Investigation ( CBI) Court in Ranchi had earlier on September 30 convicted Yadav and others in a case of fraudulent withdrawal of Rs. 37.70 crore from Chaibasa treasury in the then undivided Bihar during the RJD regime in the 1990s.

The fodder scam also known as 'Chara Ghotala' involved the siphoning of funds from the Bihar Government treasury. The alleged theft spanned over several years, and many Bihar state government administrative and elected officials across multiple administrations were allegedly engaged in it.

The fodder scam was unearthed in Bihar in 1996 when Lalu Prasad was the Chief Minister of the state.