New Delhi/Agartala, Oct 1 (IANS/TIWN) Rajya Sabha member Rasheed Masood of the Congress was Tuesday sentenced to four years in jail for fraudulently nominating undeserving candidates from across the country to MBBS seats in 1990-91, making him the first to stand disqualified as a lawmaker.

Special CBI Court Judge J.P.S. Malik held Masood guilty on charges of corruption and other offences. 

Masood, 67, was convicted of fraudulently nominating undeserving candidates from across the country to the MBBS seats allotted to Tripura medical colleges from the central pool.

He was the minister of health in the 11-month V.P. Singh government between 1990 and 1991.

Masood, who was immediately taken into custody after the sentencing, will also lose the right to contest polls for the next 10 years since a convicted leader cannot fight elections for six years from the date of release from their prison. 

Masood faces immediate disqualification as the Rajya Sabha member under a recent Supreme Court ruling that a member of parliament and state legislatures stands disqualified immediately if convicted by a court for crimes with punishment of two years or more and under some other laws even without jail sentence.

The July 10 judgment of the Supreme Court struck down a provision in the electoral law that provided protection to sitting MPs and MLAs by allowing them to continue in their posts if they appeal against a lower court conviction and secure a stay of the order within 90 days.

Masood was found guilty of offences under the Prevention of Corruption Act and under Indian Penal Code Sections 120-B (criminal conspiracy), 420 (cheating) and 468 (forgery). However, he has been acquitted of the charge of using as genuine a forged document.

Two other accused - former IPS officer Gurdayal Singh and former IAS officer Amal Kumar Roy - have also been sentenced to four years in jail while seven students who were also involved in the scam get one year in jail.

Masood has been held guilty of nominating undeserving candidates to MBBS seats allocated to Tripura from the central pool. The fraud was carried out during Masood's tenure as union Minister of State for Health in 1990-91.

The court has also found him guilty of conspiring with two others who have also been convicted.

CBI had alleged that some candidates got their names nominated for MBBS seats for academic session 1990-91 from accused Gurdial Singh, then Resident Commissioner of Tripura in New Delhi and an IPS officer of Gujarat cadre who was on deputation to government of Tripura.

As per CBI, Singh and Masood entered into criminal conspiracy among themselves and with candidates whose names were to be nominated as nominee of Tripura even when they were not qualified for the same.

With regard to one candidate (who was also an accused in the case and was a juvenile at the time of offence), CBI said, investigation revealed that the nominee's father was the editor of a daily in Uttar Pradesh and had met Masood to arrange a medical seat for his son. Masood had in turn allegedly contacted Singh for the same.

Of the 11 cases, Gurdial Singh is a common accused in six cases while retired IAS officer Amal Kumar Roy, Secretary to then Congress Chief Minister of Tripura Sudhir Ranjan Majumder has been held guilty in five similar cases.

The then chief minister of Tripura Sudhir Ranjan Majumdar and then health minister of the state, Kashi Ram Reang, also a ex-Congress leader were also accused in the case. They passed away pending trial.