Former MP couple convicted in lynching case

PATNA: A court on Monday convicted former MP couple belonging to the ruling JD(U) and five others for the lynching of a district magistrate nearly 11 years ago.

Additional District and Sessions judge Ram Krishna Rai convicted the seven under sections 302 (murder), 307 (attempt to murder), 147 (rioting) and 427 (mischief causing damage to the amount of Rs 50) of IPC.
   
The quantum of punishment would be announced on October 3.

Those convicted are JD(U) MPs Anand Mohan and Lovely Anand, JD(U) MLA from Lalganj, Vijay Kumar Shukla, former MLA Akhlaq Ahmed, Shashi Shekhar and Arun Kumar Sinha.

The judge also convicted Mohan, Lovely Anand and Arun Kumar Sinha under section 109 (abetment) of IPC.
   
Krishnaiah, the then district magistrate of Gopalganj, was lynched by a mob accompaning the cortege of Bihar People's Party (BPP) leader Chotan Shukla on December 5, 1994. The party is virtually defunct now.
   
Anand Mohan, a former MP from Sheohar, who was then the BPP chief and Lovely Anand, former MP from Vaishali, were present at the funeral procession besides Munna Shukla, the younger brother of Chotan Shukla, former MLA from Bikramganj Akhlaq Ahmed, Shashi Shekhar and Arun Kumar Sinha.
   
They were accused of having incited the mob to kill Krishnaiah.

The judge, however, acquitted 29 of the 36 accused in the case, giving them benefit of doubt.