Former gangster-turned-politician Anand Mohan has been released from jail in Bihar after the Nitish Kumar government tweaked prison rules to facilitate his release. He received the news while attending his son's engagement ceremony in Patna. This is the third time that Anand Mohan has been out on parole for his son's engagement.
Anand Mohan was informed during the function that he had been released from jail in a nearly 30-year-old murder case. In 1994, he led a mob in lynching Gopalganj District Magistrate G Krishnaiah.
Reaction to the release
Speaking to India Today, Anand Mohan said he and his supporters had been waiting for this day for years. Several top political leaders and ministers, including Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar, his deputy Tejashwi Yadav, and JDU chief Lalan Singh, were present at the engagement ceremony of Anand Mohan's son.
Engagement ceremony
Anand Mohan's elder son, Chetan Anand, exchanged engagement rings with his fiancée Ayushi at a farmhouse in Patna.
Tweaked prison rules
Anand Mohan's release comes after the Nitish Kumar government had on April 10 tweaked the Prison Manual, 2012, making changes to rule 481 to facilitate Mohan’s release. He was awarded capital punishment in 2007 in the murder case, and in 2008, the Patna High Court commuted his death sentence. The Bihar government's official notification ordered the release of 26 other prisoners who had served between 14 and 20 years in jail.
