A Delhi court is set to pronounce on Thursday its order on whether charges will be framed in the alleged land-for-job scam involving RJD chief and former railway minister Lalu Prasad Yadav, members of his family and several others.
The ruling, expected before Special CBI Judge Vishal Gogne, follows an earlier hearing on November 10, when the court deferred its order to December 4 in the case filed by the CBI. The judge is now expected to decide if the material presented by investigators constitutes sufficient evidence to proceed with charges.
The CBI has filed chargesheets against Lalu Yadav, his wife and former Bihar chief minister Rabri Devi, their son and former deputy chief minister Tejashwi Yadav, and others. The prosecution has alleged that appointments in the Group-D category of the West Central Railway Zone in Jabalpur, Madhya Pradesh, were made during Lalu Yadav’s tenure as railway minister between 2004 and 2009 in exchange for land parcels.
Investigators claim those parcels were gifted or transferred by the recruits to members of the RJD leader’s family or to associates close to him. The court will now decide whether the evidence presented is sufficient to move the case into the trial stage.
The CBI has also claimed that the appointments were made in violation of norms and that the transactions involved benami properties, amounting to criminal misconduct and conspiracy.
The accused have denied the charges, claiming the case is politically motivated.
