A day after questioning former Bihar Chief Minister Rabri Devi for around four hours at her residence in Patna, the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) on Tuesday questioned her husband and former railways minister Lalu Prasad in Delhi in connection with its investigation into the alleged land-for-jobs scam. “Currently, Lalu is staying at his daughter and Rajya Sabha MP Misa Bharti’s house and due to his medical condition, they decided to question him at her residence,” a source said. The Indian Express had reported on Monday that Lalu Prasad, as well as Bharti, are likely to be questioned in the coming days. The CBI has already filed its chargesheet in the case, and the special court has summoned the accused, including Lalu and his family members, on March 15. Lalu’s son and Bihar Deputy Chief Minister Tejashwi Yadav, who is among the nine Opposition leaders who have written to Prime Minister Narendra Modi alleging “blatant” misuse of central agencies, said: “We are not at all perturbed as there is little merit in the case. The CBI, ED [Enforcement Directorate] and income tax [department] will continue to visit us till 2024.” In May last year, the CBI had booked Lalu and his family members in a fresh case of corruption. It had named 16 people, including Lalu, Rabri and daughters Misa Bharti and Hema Yadav, as accused. According to the CBI, at least eight people were given Group D jobs in the railways in lieu of plots of land when Lalu was the railways minister. Lalu and his family allegedly acquired over 1 lakh sq ft of land for just Rs 26 lakh, when the then cumulative market value was over Rs 4.39 crore.
