The Delhi High Court on Monday issued notice to the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) on a plea filed by former Bihar Chief Minister Lalu Prasad Yadav against a trial court order framing criminal charges against him and his family members in the alleged IRCTC scam case.
Senior Advocates Kapil Sibal and Maninder Singh appeared for Yadav and stated that they are seeking a stay on the trial court proceedings. "Two witnesses have been examined in a month," the Court was told. Justice Swarana Kanta Sharma said that she will consider Yadav's plea for stay on the next date of hearing on January 14, after the CBI files its reply.
"Let them file a reply. You should have come earlier," the Court remarked. On October 13, Special Judge (PC Act) Vishal Gogne of the Rouse Avenue Courts framed charges of corruption, criminal conspiracy and cheating against Lalu Yadav. Tejashwi Yadav and Rabri Devi are charged with criminal conspiracy and cheating."This conspiracy is not entirely hidden; the entire transaction is prima facie fraudulent, and the accused cannot be discharged at this stage," the order said.
The CBI has alleged that Yadav and his family accepted prime land and shares as bribes for awarding contracts to a private firm while he was Union Railway Minister.According to the allegations, during Yadav's tenure as Railway Minister from 2004 to 2009, two IRCTC hotels in Ranchi and Puri were leased to a company named Sujata Hotels through a manipulated tender process. In return, land worth crores was transferred to a company allegedly linked to Lalu’s wife Rabri Devi and son Tejashwi Yadav at a fraction of its market value.
The Yadav family has questioned the probe and said that there was no evidence against them. They maintain that the case is politically motivated. In a detailed order passed on October 13, the trial court said that it had come to a prima facie conclusion that Lalu Yadav was in the complete know of the processes. The Court intervened to influence the transfer of the hotels.
“There were material modifications in the tender process…It has emerged as a distinct possibility that at the point of sale, the land parcels were undervalued and then came to be vested in the hands of Lalu Yadav,” the Court said.It observed that Lalu Yadav’s actions caused great loss to the public exchequer. “Various persons engaged in a conspiracy which may have involved multiple smaller conspiracies,” the Court added. Further, the Court stressed that the entire process amounted to crony capitalism in the garb of promoting private participation.
"This conspiracy is not entirely hidden; the entire transaction is prima facie fraudulent, and the accused cannot be discharged at this stage," the order said.
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