Fresh charges for India minister

Laloo Prasad Yadav: Denies wrongdoing

India's Railway Minister Laloo Prasad Yadav has been charged with embezzling millions of dollars in a long-running corruption case.

The charge relates to a case known as the "fodder scam", which first came to light in 1996.

Mr Yadav was charged with embezzling state funds intended to be spent on animal fodder while he was chief minister of eastern Bihar state.

He and another former chief minister also accused have denied wrongdoing.

The treasuries from which money was allegedly stolen are situated in Jharkhand, which was split from Bihar to become a separate state in 2000.

Two special investigative courts in Ranchi, state capital of Jharkhand, charged Mr Yadav and others - including another former Bihar chief minister Jagannath Mishra - on Monday.

In the first case, the court charged Mr Yadav and Mr Mishra with misappropriating $41m of state funds. This is the largest sum of money mentioned in any of the cases relating to the "fodder scam".

A second case accused the two men of illegally withdrawing $200,000 from the treasury in Deogarh, in Jharkhand.

Charges have been filed against a total of 170 people in connection with the "fodder scam".

Speaking for himself

In one of the cases, Mr Yadav insisted on pleading his own case saying that he was a law graduate and wanted to present his side of the story.

He said that it was perhaps the first case in India, where the initial complainant had become the accused.

The "fodder scam" had first come to light while he was heading the Bihar state government, he said.

The Central Bureau of Investigations has so far filed nearly 60 cases in connection with the scandal, in which $143m are said to have been siphoned off.

Mr Yadav's role has been investigated in seven cases so far. He has been charged in a total of four cases this year.

Laloo Prasad Yadav is one of India's most colourful politicians. He leads an influential regional party in Bihar that is allied with the Congress Party in India's national parliament.

He resigned as chief minister of Bihar after the allegations of corruption arose. His wife Rabri Devi was installed in his place.