Special court hands 1-yr jail term to RJD leader Shivanand Tiwari

Patna : A MP-MLA court in Patna has sentenced RJD Vice President Shivanand Tiwari to one year imprisonment and Rs 10,000 fine in a criminal defamation case on Tuesday.

However, the court also granted one month interim bail to 80 years-old veteran RJD leader for an appeal in the higher courts.

The case against Tiwari was filed by Water Resource Development Minister Sanjay Kumar Jha in 2018, who is considered to be close to Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar.

On August 7, 2018, Tiwari -- after JD-U left Mahagathbandhan and joined BJP – addressed a press conference and made personal objectionable remarks against Sanjay Kumar Jha.

Following his objectionable remarks, Jha filed a criminal defamation case in MP-MLA court in Patna on September 15, 2018. The Additional Chief Judicial magistrate had issued summon a year ago in the case. When contacted, Tiwari refused to talk to IANS regarding the case.