Land-for-job scam: Former Bihar Chief Minister Lalu Prasad Yadav, his wife Rabri Devi-also an ex-CM, and his daughter and RJD MP Misa Bharti appeared before a court in Delhi...
Digital Desk: Former Bihar Chief Minister Lalu Prasad Yadav, his wife Rabri Devi-also an ex-CM, and his daughter and RJD MP Misa Bharti appeared before a court in Delhi on Wednesday in connection with a money laundering probe into the 'land for jobs' scam. This comes just days after the Enforcement Directorate (ED) conducted searches in multiple cities in Bihar and other locations, including the premises of Lalu Prasad Yadav's family and RJD leaders, in connection with the case.
During the raids, Rs 53 lakh, $1,900, about 540 grams of gold and bullion, and 1.5 kg of gold jewellery were seized, sources in the agency told news agency PTI adding that one of the locations searched was a house in south Delhi where Lalu Prasad’s son and Bihar Deputy chief minister Tejashwi Yadav were present.
The house in Delhi's New Friends Colony area is the registered address of a "beneficiary company," A K Infosystems Pvt Ltd, involved in the case; however, the ED claims that it was being used as a residential property by the Yadav family.
The searches included residences linked to Lalu Prasad's daughters Ragini Yadav, Chanda Yadav, and Hema Yadav, as well as former RJD MLA Syed Abu Dojana, Amit Katyal, Navdeep Sardana, and Praveen Jain in Patna, Phulwari Sharif, Delhi-NCR, Ranchi, and Mumbai.
About two dozen locations were searched along with an escort of central security forces, they said. Dojana briefly appeared on a balcony of his palatial house in Patna to declare to media persons waiting outside that "I don't know what these people are trying to search at my place." "I only know this much that we are paying the price for not cowing down before the BJP," he said.
Premises of companies like Brahma City Pvt Ltd, Elite Landbase Pvt Ltd, Whiteland Corporation Pvt Ltd and Meridian Construction India Ltd were also searched.
What is the land-for-job scam
The alleged land-for-job scam occurred during Lalu Prasad's tenure as Railway Minister in the UPA-1 government. It was alleged that from 2004 to 2009, several people were appointed to Group D positions in different zones of the Indian Railways in exchange for transferring their land to family members of Lalu Prasad, the then-minister of railways, and A K Infosystems Pvt Ltd.
According to the officials, Ragini Yadav and Chanda Yadav were ex-directors of A K Infosystems Pvt Ltd, which allegedly got a land parcel from a candidate.
Reportedly, Hema Yadav is a "beneficiary" of two land parcels received in lieu of a job in the Indian Railways. The ED claims Katyal is a "close associate" of Lalu Prasad and a former member of A K Infosystems Pvt Ltd.
It is alleged that Lalu Prasad’s family, including his wife and former Bihar chief minister Rabri Devi, "sold four such land pieces illegally acquired at the cost of Rs 7.5 lakh to a company called Meridian Construction India Ltd, owned and controlled" by Dojana, for a "consideration" amount of Rs 3.5 crore.
RJD leader Manoj Jha claimed that the CBI and ED were following "someone else's script" in conducting searches against opposition leaders and that the ED "raids" on his party leaders were a "reaction" to the change in government in Bihar in August last year.
The CBI has submitted a charge sheet in the case against Lalu Prasad, Rabri Devi, and 14 others on charges of criminal conspiracy and violations of the Prevention of Corruption Act, and all of the accused have been summoned on March 15, officials said.
The CBI complaint prompted the ED investigation, which was brought under the criminal sections of the Prevention of Money Laundering Act. The CBI recently questioned Lalu Prasad and Rabri Devi in this matter.
The CBI claims that no advertisement or public notice was released for the appointment, but that some Patna residents were appointed as substitutes in various zonal railways situated in Mumbai, Jabalpur, Kolkata, Jaipur, and Hazipur.
As a bribe, the candidates reportedly sold land to Lalu Prasad's family members at deeply discounted prices ranging from one-fourth to one-fifth of market value, according to the CBI.
After the CBI recently questioned his parents, Tejashwi Yadav told reporters that Lalu Prasad, the former railway minister, had "no powers" to provide jobs in return for favors.
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