Land for jobs case: CBI books Tejashwi’s personal secretary

The case pertains to allegations that Lalu and his family took land to provide jobs to people in the Indian Railways during his tenure as railway minister.

Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar with Deputy Chief Minister Tejashwi Yadav during death anniversary function of Lok Nayak Jay Prakash Narayan, in Patna, Saturday, Oct. 08, 2022. (PTI Photo)

A day after it filed a chargesheet against former Bihar chief minister Lalu Prasad, his wife Rabri Devi and daughter Misa Bharati in connection with the “land for jobs” case, the CBI Saturday questioned the personal secretary of Lalu’s son Tejashwi Yadav. Sources said Sanjay Yadav’s name had come up during interrogation of other accused people.

The CBI had booked Lalu Yadav and his family members in a fresh case of corruption in May this year. The agency had named as many as 16 people, including Lalu Yadav, his wife Rabri Devi, his daughters Misha Bharti and Hema Yadav and the beneficiaries of the entire process, as accused in the FIR.

A total of 16 people were named in the CBI chargesheet on Friday. The accused include Sowmya Raghvan, the then GM, Railways; Kamal Deep Mainrai, the then CPO, Railways. The alleged beneficiaries, appointed as railway substitutes, are Rajkumar Singh, Mithlesh Kumar, Ajay Kumar, Sanjay Kumar, Dharmendra Kumar, Vikas Kumar, and Abhishek Kumar; and alleged middlemen Ravindra Rai, Kiran Devi, Akhileshwar Singh and Ramashish Singh.

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“During investigation, it has been found that the accused in conspiracy with the then GM Central Railways and CPO, Central Railways engaged persons as substitutes in lieu of land either in their name or in the name of their close relatives. This land was acquired at prices lower than the prevailing circle rate and much lower than the market rate. It was also alleged that the candidates have used false TC and submitted false attested documents to the Ministry of Railways,” a CBI statement said.

Following its FIR in May, the agency had also launched search operations at 17 locations on premises associated with Lalu and his family members, including his daughter Misa Bharti, among others.

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