Former Indian minister gets life for murder

Public Prosecutor A K Singh had pressed for death sentence for 65-year-old Soren and four others, who were also convicted for the murder of Shashi Nath Jha 12 years ago, but Additional Sessions Judge B R Kedia, who announced the quantum of sentence on Tuesday evening, rejected the plea saying that "it is not the rarest of rare cases" which merits the maximum punishment.

Soren, chief of Jharkhand Mukti Morcha who resigned as Coal Minister soon after his conviction, a political party of the tribal state of Jharkhand and a constituent of India's ruling United Progressive Alliance, became the first cabinet minister of India on November 28 when the court had convicted him of the murder in 1994.