Former Bihar Minister Manju Verma Gets Bail in Arms Act Case

Verma was arrested after recovery of cartridges as a part of the probe in Muzaffarpur shelter home sex scandal case.

File image of former Bihar minister Manju Verma.

(Photo: IANS)

The Patna High Court on Tuesday, 12 March, granted bail to former Bihar minister Manju Verma in connection with a case related to possession of illegal ammunition, which is an offshoot of the Muzaffarpur shelter home sex scandal case.

Justice Dinesh Kumar Singh granted bail to Verma after hearing both sides on her petition.

She has been lodged in Begusarai jail since 20 November last year in connection with the recovery of cartridges from her in-laws' residence during a CBI raid as part of the probe into the Muzaffarpur shelter home sex scandal.

The CBI had registered an FIR on 18 August, 2018 against Manju Verma and her husband Chandrashekhar Verma for the recovery of 50 live cartridges from their house at Arjun Tola village in Begusarai district.

Verma had resigned as social welfare minister on 8 August following allegations that her husband had links to Brajesh Thakur, who used to run the shelter home at Muzaffarpur.

The sexual exploitation of children in the shelter home came to light after the Tata Institute of Social Sciences of Mumbai submitted an audit report of 110 shelter homes in Bihar in April, 2018.

The audit had been ordered by the state government and it filed an FIR against 11 people, including Thakur, on 31 May, 2018.

A medical report confirmed sexual assault of 34 inmates.