A special court on Wednesday awarded life imprisonment to nine people and acquitted former minister and Janata Dal (United) or JD(U) leader Shribhagwan Singh Kushwaha in connection with the killing of five upper caste men returning from a Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) rally in Bihar in 1993.
According to the prosecution, an armed squad of the disbanded Indian People Front gunned down the five in March 1993 at Atapur village.
The court awarded life imprisonment to convicts Rajendra Shah, Buddhu Shah, Police Mahto, Gauri Mahto, Bahadur Ram, Satyanarayan Ram, Dularchand Yadav, Bhadosa Ram, and Baleshwar Ram under the Indian Penal Code’s Sections of 302 (murder) and 307 (attempt to murder).
The charges were framed against the accused in August 2006 and 12 witnesses recorded their statements before the court.
Kushwaha’s lawyer, Bhuneshwar Tiwary, said his client’s role in the killings could not be established and that he was acquitted for the lack of evidence.