PATNA, May 2: Bihar Chief Minister Laloo Prasad Yadav will be charged in all the 46 cases filed in the Rs 950 crore fodder scam. So far, his name figured only in five cases related to the conspiracy angle.

Arguing before the Division Bench of the Patna High Court monitoring the investigations into the scam, comprising Justice S N Jha and Justice S K Mukhopadhyaya, the CBI Joint Director, U N Biswas, said that Laloo Prasad was the key player in the fodder scam and that investigations pointed towards his direct involvement in all the cases.

Submitting in the court Biswas said, ``it is like a train. The guard and driver of the train are the same persons. Only the passengers are boarding and getting down at different stations''.

Significantly, despite clearing the proposal to file the chargesheet in conspiracy case (RC 20), differences still persist between CBI Director Joginder Singh, and his deputy on the issue.

This was evident during the hearing of the case today. While Additional Solicitor General K N Bhatt, appearing on behalf of the Director, suggested for the amalgamation of all the 46 cases for proper investigation and then go in for the filing of the chargesheet, the Joint Director rejected his proposal at the outset and strongly pleaded for filing of separate chargesheets, according to the earlier direction of the court.

Making a submission before the court Biswas said, ``the thread of conspiracy runs through every case. It is not that only one person is involved. Nearly 100 persons are involved in one case alone''.

He sought to dispel the suspicion that the Director was under any pressure from any quarter and said, ``we are making efforts. Nothing to be suspected of the honesty of the Director''. The court, apparently satisfied with the argument of reserved its order on the contempt proceedings against CBI Director.

Earlier, the CBI Director, through an affidavit today apologised to the High Court for his misconduct and requested for the dropping of contempt proceedings against him.Ravi Shankar Prasad, counsel for petitioner Sushil Kumar Mody, sought the intervention of the court to impose a time limit for obtaining the permission to prosecute the accused persons. He also argued that those not serving in the government should be charged immediately.

Meanwhile, ruling Janata Dal activists today staged a demostration before the main entrance of the Patna High Court in protest againsat the CBI decision to prosecute Chief Minister Laloo Prasad.

The demostrators raised ``Anti-CBI, anti-BJP' slogans soon after the CBI officials left the court in a convoy under a tight security cordon after attending a hearing on the scam.On the other hand, a general alert has been sounded across Bihar in view of tomorrow's bandh, called by the BJP-Samata Party combine, to press for Laloo Prasad's resignation following the CBI's decision to chargesheet him in the fodder scam, officials said.

State home secretary D P Maheshwari said that elaborate security arrangements were made to ensure a peaceful bandh.

Reinforcements were rushed to sensitive areas and police personnel posted to protect vital installations, he said.

Police patrolling was intensified. A watch was kept on the railway tracks as the two parties have threatened to disrupt train services. Clashes between the JD activists and bandh supporters were apprehended with the Patna Mahanagar JD threatening to ``settle scores in streets'' with those trying to forcibly enforce the bandh.

Copyright © 1997 Indian Express Newspapers (Bombay) Ltd.