The Enforcement Department (ED) on Wednesday grilled RJD president Lalu Prasad for nearly four hours in connection with the alleged railways land-for-jobs scam.
A large number of party workers gathered outside on the streets, chanting slogans in Lalu’s favour to protest what they called a deliberate attempt by the central agency to harass the RJD chief and his family.
Lalu’s younger son and the leader of the Opposition in the Bihar Assembly, Tejashwi Yadav, slammed the Centre for indulging in “political vendetta”.
Lalu, accompanied by his daughter and Patliputra MP, Misa Bharti, reached the ED office at around 11am and was questioned for four hours.
In between, he was allowed a break to drink “sattu”, which was sent in by RJD spokesperson Shakti Yadav.
On Tuesday, the central agency had questioned his wife and former chief minister Rabri Devi, as well as his eldest son and MLA, Tej Pratap Yadav, in the same case.
Sources in the ED said the questioning was related to the transfer of large plots of land and other properties to Lalu and his family members at prices significantly lower than market rates. These immovable assets were spread across Delhi, Patna and other parts of Bihar.
The interrogation also focused on how and why members of the families that sold or gifted such land received jobs in various railway zones. The agency officials confronted the RJD chief with specific instances.
Crying foul, Tejashwi told the media that his family was facing political vendetta but was unperturbed by it.
“After the Delhi Assembly polls, I had predicted that the BJP would now shift its focus to Bihar. We are not bothered. Let them come and go. We are following the provisions of the law. They summon us, and we go to them. But nothing will come of it,” Tejashwi said.
“There would have been no case against me had I not been in politics. The cases are heaped on us as part of political vendetta and conspiracy. But we are not going to be affected in any manner,” he added.
Tejashwi asserted that the central government was misusing constitutional bodies, but “it will only make us stronger, and we will form the government in Bihar in the coming elections”.
