Former Bihar minister Manju Verma, who had been evading arrest in an Arms Act case, surrendered before a Begusarai court on Tuesday, 20 November. The court remanded her to judicial custody till 1 December, reported news agency PTI.
Additional Chief Judicial Magistrate, Manjhaul Sub-Division, Prabhat Trivedi passed the order after a medical team examined the condition of the former minister, who fell unconscious several times after reaching the court in a three-wheeler. She had kept her face covered with a shawl and sari.
Verma had stepped down as the social welfare minister in the wake of the Muzaffarpur shelter home scandal, in which several inmates had complained of being sexually assaulted. There were allegations that Verma’s husband had close links with Brajesh Thakur, the prime accused in the scandal.
Earlier, the Supreme Court had on Monday, 12 November, slammed the Bihar Police for not arresting Verma in a case related to the recovery of ammunition from her possession. The apex court had directed the DGP to appear in person on 27 November if she was not caught by then.
"Fantastic! Cabinet minister (Manju Verma) on the run, fantastic. How could it happen that a Cabinet minister is absconding and nobody knows where she is. You realise the seriousness of the issue that a Cabinet minister is not traceable. It’s too much,” ANI had quoted Justice Madan B Lokur as saying earlier this month.
The police had subsequently moved an application before a court in Muzaffarpur on Saturday, 17 November, to proclaim Verma an absconder following which a notice to the effect was affixed on her house and her property was attached.
An FIR was registered against Verma and her husband Chandrasekhar Verma in August 2018 after the CBI recovered a huge quantity of ammunition from the minister’s residence during raids in connection with the shelter home sexual assault case.
On 30 October, the top court had pulled up the Bihar Police, saying that even after Verma’s anticipatory bail application was dismissed by the Patna High Court, the police had still not arrested her.
"Is she above the law? She might be an ex-minister, but she is not above the law. Her anticipatory bail was rejected by the high court on 9 October. Why she has not been arrested till now? What were you doing till now? You let us know the details," the bench had said.
Her husband Chandrashekhar had surrendered before a Begusarai court on 29 October, the apex court was informed by the Bihar government last month.
JD(U) and RJD-Congress Trade Charges
Verma's surrender triggered a war of words between the ruling Janata Dal (United) and the opposition RJD-Congress combine.
Although JD(U) leaders said Verma’s surrender was proof that the party had never patronised those involved in criminal cases, the RJD-Congress combine alleged that former minister had been “hiding” with the help of the state government, and was asked to surrender after the Supreme Court directive.
(With inputs from PTI and ANI.)
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