Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD) president Lalu Prasad on Wednesday appeared before the Enforcement Directorate (ED) in connection with the land-for-jobs money laundering case.
His deposition follows the questioning of his wife and former Bihar Chief Minister Rabri Devi, and his son, Tej Pratap Yadav, who were interrogated by the agency a day earlier.
A large gathering of RJD supporters lined the streets outside the ED’s office on Bank Road, raising slogans in support of the ailing septuagenarian leader.
Security was tightened to prevent any untoward incident as Prasad arrived for questioning.
On Tuesday, Rabri Devi and her elder son Tej Pratap Yadav faced nearly four hours of interrogation. They were accompanied to the ED office by Misa Bharti, the RJD leader’s eldest daughter and sitting MP from Patliputra.
Speaking to journalists, Bharti said, “The ED had summoned my family members. So, we did our duty by cooperating with the inquiry.”
She questioned the timing of the probe, stating, “After all, it is such an old matter. We have seen agencies acting like this whenever elections are to be held anywhere.”
The case pertains to Prasad’s tenure as Railway Minister in the Congress-led UPA government between 2004 and 2009.
According to the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI), candidates were allegedly appointed to Group D positions in Indian Railways in exchange for land transferred at nominal prices to the RJD leader’s family members or associates.
Tejashwi Yadav, Prasad’s younger son and political heir, dismissed the allegations as politically motivated.
“The more we are harassed, the stronger we shall become. Had I not been in politics, I would not have been dragged into this,” he told reporters. He alleged that central agencies were acting under political pressure, adding, “I had predicted after the Delhi Assembly elections that now the agencies will turn their gaze towards Bihar.”
RJD spokesperson Ejaz Ahmed echoed similar sentiments, stating, “It is now obvious that the BJP unleashes central agencies on its opponents whenever it has to face an election in a state. We saw it in Jharkhand and Delhi. Now it is being seen in Bihar.”
The Bihar Assembly elections are due later this year.
Also read: Land-for-jobs case: ED summons Lalu Prasad, kin on Wednesday
The ED, which had earlier filed a chargesheet in the case before a Delhi court, has named Rabri Devi, Misa Bharti, and Hema Yadav, Prasad’s other daughter, among the accused.
The agency claims that land parcels were acquired in the names of Prasad’s family members for undervalued sums through shell companies.
It further alleges that firms such as A K Infosystems Private Ltd and A B Exports Private Ltd were used as conduits to transfer ill-gotten gains to Prasad’s family members.
One of the accused, Hridyanand Chaudhary, a former employee at Rabri Devi’s gaushala (cow shelter), had reportedly acquired a property from a railway job candidate before transferring it to Hema Yadav, according to ED findings.
The CBI’s First Information Report (FIR) in the case alleges that the recruitment of Group D substitutes in Indian Railways was conducted in a manner that involved the exchange of land as bribes.
The ED’s case is based on this FIR and focuses on the financial transactions linked to the alleged scam.
The fresh round of questioning was reportedly necessitated by the emergence of additional evidence, officials said.
The ED is recording the statements of Prasad and his family members under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA).
As the probe continues, Prasad’s family and RJD leaders remain defiant, alleging political vendetta behind the investigations.
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