Patna: The Bihar government under chief minister Nitish Kumar – who loves to be called ‘Sushasan Babu’ (the man of good governance) – has changed rules to release former MP Anand Mohan Singh, who is serving a life sentence for the murder of a district magistrate in 1994.
The Mahagathbandhan government has amended the Bihar Prison Manual, 2012 to drop the “murder of a public servant on duty” clause from the list of cases for which remission of jail term cannot be considered.
In December, 1994, a mob led by Anand Mohan dragged magistrate (DM) G Krishnaiah (35) – a Dalit – from his official vehicle, stoned him and then shot him dead for not taking “timely action” into the murder of his close aide Chhotan Shukla in Gopalganj district – the home town of Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD) chief Lalu Prasad Yadav.
On Monday, the state government released a notification officially ordering the release of Anand Mohan and 26 other prisoners who have served at least 14 years in jail or 20 years with remission.
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The change in rules, approved by the Bihar state sentence remission council in its meeting on April 20, has helped Anand Mohan, a Rajput leader with considerable influence on his caste voters, to be considered for release.
Anand Mohan was originally sentenced to death in 2007, but this was later commuted to life imprisonment by the Patna High Court in 2008. He has been in Saharsa jail since 2007, challenging his sentence in the Supreme Court, where he received no relief.
He is currently out on parole for 15 days to attend his son’s ring ceremony, after which he will return to the jail in Saharsa. It is likely to be released from jail on Thursday, April 27, once the necessary paperwork is completed.
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Despite boasting himself as a person who upholds rule of the law, CM Nitish has not shied away from hobnobbing with the criminal-turned-politician since he formed the government with the RJD in August 2021.
In November last year, the JDU leader descended on the wedding of Anand Mohan’s daughter ring exchange ceremony along with many members of his Cabinet. Back then, he was released from jail on a 15-day parole which also coincided with assembly bypolls in Gopalganj and Mokama.
Chief minister Nitish Kumar has publicly aired his desire to release Anand Mohan in the past few months.