Case cost: The Patna High Court on Wednesday directed the Bihar School Examination Board to give Rs 2,000 as the cost of contesting the case to its superannuated employee Suryakeshwar Prasad, who was not paid gratuity despite a high court order.

A single bench of Justice S K Katriar passed an order to this effect on Wednesday while hearing the contempt of court petition of Prasad. The bench directed the Bihar School Examination Board to pay gratuity to the petitioner.

Scam accused: The Patna High Court on Wednesday gave liberty to State Election Commissioner D P Maheshwari, a former secretary of the state road construction department who is an accused in the bitumen scam, to move the special judge for CBI cases for challenging the cognisance taken against him during the framing of charges against him in a bitumen scam case. The special judge for CBI cases is hearing bitumen scam cases.

Making an observation to this effect, a single bench of Justice V N Sinha of the high court disposed of Maheshwari's petition which sought quashing of the cognisance taken against him by the special judge for CBI cases in the bitumen scam case on the ground that the sanction taken by the CBI for prosecuting him (Maheshwari) was not proper.