GANGSTER-turned-politician Anand Mohan Singh, who was serving a life sentence, was released from Saharsa jail on Thursday morning after being behind the bars for 15 years. The former Bihar MP was released under a jail sentence remission order after the State Government’s recent amendment of prison rules which allowed the early release of 27 convicts, including him.

Singh was convicted for his role in the 1994 murder of the then Gopalganj collector G Krishnaiah during the funeral procession of Muzaffarpur gangster Chotan Shukla. A local court had sentenced him to death in October 2007 but Patna High Court commuted it to life imprisonment in December, 2008, after an appeal. The Nitish Kumar Government amended the Bihar Prison Manual, 2012, on April 10 removing a clause that said those convicted for murder of a public servant on duty could not be given remission of their jail term. This, critics claim, was done to help release Mohan.

The move had sparked political controversy with the coalition Government facing criticism from the Opposition.

BJP leader and former Deputy Chief Minister Sushil Kumar Modi said Kumar has “sacrificed law to stay in power” with support from ally RJD. Krishnaiah’s widow too has expressed disappointment over the State Government’s decision to release Singh.