Former Bihar Chief Ministers — Lalu Prasad Yadav and his wife Rabri — on Thursday invoked the caste card even in their legal battle.
NEW DELHI: Former Bihar Chief Ministers — Lalu Prasad Yadav and his wife Rabri — on Thursday invoked the caste card even in their legal battle in the disproportionate assets cases trial.
RJD leaders counsel Ram Jethmalani told a Bench headed by Justice K G Balakrishnan that his clients feared unfair trial, as the BJP didn’t want a ‘dalit’ judge prosecute them. BJP’s Sushil Kumar Modi is Bihar’s deputy chief minister and has also sought cancellation of bail to the Yadav couple.
Jethmalani said before CBI special Judge Munilal Paswan took up the trial, all other judges in the past were `Brahmins’ but the BJP didn’t have any objections.
“When the case was tried before the upper caste people (judges) there were no complaints. But now when a `dalit’ judge is trying the case BJP has problem,” counsel argued seeking rejection of the petitioners’ plea for change in the trial court Judge.
Petitioner’s counsel Mukul Rohatgi strongly objected to the constitutional expert’s contentions. He said it wasn’t proper for a senior lawyer for raising the issue of “high castes and low castes”. “My clients are ready for the shifting of the trial anywhere. Be it Delhi, Mumbai, Kolkata or Chennai...,” Jethmalani said.
Judges fixed July 12, 13 and 14 for the final hearing of the case. “This man (Paswan) has an unblemished record of integrity in his 18 years of judicial career,” Jethmalani said.
Rohatgi has opposed Jethmalani’s plea for lifting the stay on the trial. SC had stayed the trial and asked a High Court committee to look into the appointment of Judge Paswan after Yogender Prasad who was promoted.
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