Capital punishment to former MP Anand Mohan

Patna, Oct 3: A local court here today awarded capital punishment to former MP Anand Mohan, former Minister Akhlak Ahmad and Prof Arun Kumar in the District Magistrate M G Krishnaiya murder case of December 1994.

Additional District and Sessions Judge of Patna R S Rai awarded life imprisonment to four others accused in the case, including ruling JD(U) MLA Vijay Kumar Shukla alias Munna Shukla former MP Lovely Anand, Harendra Prasad and Shashi Shekhar Thakur.

Apart from awarding life to the four convicts, the judge also slapped a fine of Rs 25,000 against each of the accused.

The judge ordered that 50 per cent of the amount submitted as fine would be sent to the wife of the deceased.

Gopalganj G Krishnaiya, who was on way to Gopalganj from Samastipur, was thrashed by the mob and later shot dead near Khabra village on National Highway 28 in Muzaffarpur district on December 5, 1994.

while delivering the judgement in the sensational murder case on October 1, the court held seven high profile politicians guilty of murdering Mr Krishnaiyya. All the convicts, lodged at Beur Central Jail, were produced before the court amid tight security arrangements during the day.

The judge pronounced the quantum of punishment today in a fully-packed court room.

While pleading over the quantum of punishment, Special Public prosecutor Chittaranjan Prasad Sinha vociferously argued for capital punishment in view of the nature of the crime.

Pleading on behalf of Munna Shukla, his counsel Valmiki Prasad Sinha said that according to evidence, his client was not liable for capital punishment. Toeing similar lines, senior counsel Mr Rudrankdhari Singh pleading on behalf of Anand Mohan, Lavli Anand, Prof Arun Kumar Singh and Harendra Prasad stated that his clients had not murdered the DM themselves.

Under such circumstancesm Mr Singh said all his four clients do not deserve capital punishment in the eyes of law.

Appearing on behlaf of Akhlak Ahmad, the senior lawyer Vinay Kumar Singh argued that it was not a rare of the rarest case and hence capital punishment should not be awarded to the convicts.

Meanwhile, one of the counsels of the convicts Rudrankdhari Singh said that they would appeal before the high court against todays judgement of the sessions court.

Earlier, the court had cancelled bail to all seven accused on October 1 and had ordered the police to arrest them.

The court had found the accused guilty under sections 147, 302,307, 149 and 427 of the IPC, and while delivering the judgement the judge had stated that the accused were members of the unlawful assembly which murdered the senior IAS officer and the then District Magistrate (DM) of Gopalganj G.Krishnaiya on December 5,1994.

Anand Mohan and Lavli Anand along with Munna Shukla, Akhlak Ahmad, Prof Arun Kumar, Harendra Prasad, Shashi Shekhar Thakur were leading a funeral procession of a dreaded criminal Chotan Shukla killed in gang war. Soon after spotting the official car of Mr Krishnaiyya, the mob angry with the administration attacked the vehicle and dragged the DM out of the car. The funeral mob thrashed Mr Krishnaiyya and had shot him dead on the spot.

Altogether, 36 people were made accused in the FIR of which 29 were exonerated by the court on October one.

Mr Krishnaiyya is survived by his wife and two minor daughters.

UNI