New Delhi, Jan 9 A Delhi court on Friday framed charges against Lalu Prasad, his wife Rabri Devi, and their son Tejashwi Yadav in the high-profile 'land-for-jobs' case, calling their actions part of a “criminal syndicate”.
The case, investigated by the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI), alleges that during Lalu’s tenure as Railway Minister, jobs were exchanged for land parcels transferred to his family.
The period of the alleged offence is between 2004 and 2009, when Lalu Prasad was Union Railway Minister in the first United Progressive Alliance government led by Manmohan Singh.
The agency probed the modus operandi which claimed that individuals seeking jobs in the Railways reportedly transferred land at throwaway prices to Lalu’s family members and associates.
Incidentally, Lalu and Rabri have both been Bihar Chief Ministers, with a comprehensive period of rule running into over a decade that saw intermittent breaks.
Rabri Devi, a homemaker with no prior experience in politics, became the first female Chief Minister of Bihar in 1997, after Lalu had to step down following corruption charges related to the “fodder scam”.
In the current case, the CBI filed chargesheets against the three Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD) leaders and others, claiming that Lalu “misused the Railway Ministry as a personal fiefdom to run a criminal enterprise”.
Special Judge Vishal Gogne of Rouse Avenue Court stated that Lalu and his family “acted as a criminal syndicate” and used public employment as a bargaining chip.
The court found prima facie evidence of an “overarching conspiracy” involving Lalu and his family with charges of corruption, cheating, and criminal conspiracy under the Prevention of Corruption Act and IPC provisions.
Between 2004 and 2009, as the Union Railway Minister, Lalu Prasad and his family members and associates were allegedly benefitted with land parcels transferred at nominal prices by several individuals against jobs in his department.
These transactions came to be later became known as the 'land-for-jobs scam'.
The central agency initiated investigations on the reported scam between 2018 and 2019, and registered a case against Lalu, and the others.
The agency alleged that the jobs were given without following due process and were linked directly to land transfers.
In 2019, the CBI conducted raids at multiple locations, including properties linked to Lalu’s family, intensifying the probe.
The agency filed its charge sheet against Lalu Prasad, Rabri Devi, Tejashwi Yadav, and other family members three years later, detailing how land parcels were transferred to the Yadav family at throwaway prices.
It accused them of corruption, cheating, and criminal conspiracy under the then IPC and the Prevention of Corruption Act.
Taking cognisance of the charge sheet the following year, a Delhi court summoned Lalu, Rabri, Tejashwi, and others to appear before it.
The family denied wrongdoing, calling the case politically motivated.
Last year, the three family members were granted bail, with their lawyers arguing that the case was based on weak evidence and political vendetta. The prosecution, however, maintained that there was clear proof of quid pro quo between jobs and land transfers.
With charges officially framed against them, the case is now set for trial, where the outcome will determine both the legal accountability of the Yadav family and the political future of Tejashwi, the leader of Bihar’s Opposition Mahagathbandhan bloc.
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