SITAMARHI: A Sitamarhi fast-track court on Thursday awarded 10 years' rigorous imprisonment to 15 people, including a BJP MLA and two former MPs, for ransacking the district collectorate and attempting to murder public servants, including district magistrate Ram Nandan Prasad and superintendent of police Paresh Saxena, about 17 years ago.

According to the prosecution, the attack took place during a gherao of the Sitamarhi collectorate in August 1998. The agitators, who were protesting against alleged inadequate relief given to flood victims, also ransacked the collectorate and injured several policemen and magistrates. Five people, including former MLA Ramcharitra Rai , were killed in the subsequent police firing.

Those sentenced on Thursday included Parihar MLA Ram Naresh Yadav (BJP), former Sitamarhi MP Nawal Kishore Rai (JD-U) and former Sheohar MP Anwarul Haq (RJD).

Sheohar district Congress chief Mohammad Asad, Rashtriya Lok Samata Party's Sitamarhi district president Ram Lashan Singh Kushwaha and general secretary Mohan Kumar Singh, former Sitamarhi Nagar Parishad vice-chairman Manoj Kumar and Nawal Kishore Rai's then bodyguard Suryadev Rai were among the others to be sentenced.

The court of ad hoc additional district judge Mohammad Irshad Ali announced the quantum of punishment for the convicts amid heavy security. It had held them guilty on Tuesday.