New Delhi, July 30 : A city court on Monday issued summons to former Railway Minister Lalu Prasad, his wife Rabri Devi, son Tejashwi Yadav and others in connection with the 2006 IRCTC hotels maintenance contract case.

The case relates to alleged irregularities in the allotment of contracts of two IRCTC hotels in Ranchi and Puri in 2006 to a private firm involving a bribe in the form of a three-acre commercial plot at a prime location in Patna district.

After taking cognisance of the charge sheet, Special Judge Arvind Kumar asked them to appear in court on August 31.

The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) in April filed the charge sheet in the Indian Railway Catering and Tourism Corporation (IRCTC) hotels maintenance contract case against 12 people and two companies.

Among those named in the chargesheet were Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD) chief Lalu Prasad, his wife and former Bihar Chief Minister Rabri Devi, his son and former Deputy Chief Minister Tejashwi Yadav, former Managing Director of IRCTC P.K. Goel, Sujata Hotels directors Vinay and Vijay Kochhar, Sarala Gupta -- wife of Prem Chand Gupta, RJD MP.

The CBI charge sheet also named Additional Member of the Railway Board B.K. Agarwal, who was then Group General Manager (GGM) of the IRCTC.

The central probe agency also named former GGM of IRCTC V.K. Asthana, R.K. Gogia -- then GGM (company secretary) of IRCTC, Ramesh Saxena -- then IRCTC Director, and Sujata Hotels Pvt Ltd.

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New Delhi (PTI): Three members of a family were found dead inside their home in southeast Delhi's Kalkaji on Friday, with police suspecting it to be a case of suicide, officials said.

Police said the incident came to light around 2.47 pm when a police team reached the premises to execute a court order related to possession of the property. When repeated knocks went unanswered, the staff used a duplicate key to open the door.

Inside, officers found Anuradha Kapoor (52) and her sons, Ashish Kapoor (32) and Chaitanya Kapoor (27), hanging from the ceiling, Deputy Commissioner of Police (Southeast) Hemant Tiwari said in a statement. All three were declared dead.

A handwritten note was recovered from the room, suggesting the family had been struggling with depression.

"The handwritten note indicates emotional distress faced by the family due to which the family may have taken the extreme step," the officer said.

The bodies have been shifted to the All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS) mortuary for post-mortem and other legal formalities under Section 194 of the Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita (BNSS), police said.

Residents of the neighbourhood said they were shocked to learn about the deaths, adding that the family kept largely to themselves.

Pankaj Kashyap, a resident of Girinagar, said he learnt about the deaths while leaving for work. "I live and work here and was leaving for work when I saw many people standing outside and talking. That is how I got to know that three people had committed suicide. I also saw several police vehicles outside, but I do not know much beyond that," he said.

Baldev, another neighbour, said the family had been living in the newly constructed house for around two years. "We only knew that a mother and her two children lived there. They had moved into the newly built house around two years ago. We did not interact much with them. Today we heard that all three have committed suicide, and whatever we know is based on what people here are saying," he said.

Another neighbour, Ramesh Kumar, claimed the family had earlier attempted suicide.

"About fifteen to twenty days ago, the two sons in the family had attempted suicide and police and ambulances had come. That was when I first got to know who they were. I do not recognise them by face, but we saw the ambulances and police take the two sons that day. Today again we saw ambulances and police arriving, so everyone came out to see what had happened. I do not know how long they had been living here, but this is all we know," he said.

Police said they are examining the family's financial condition, social circumstances, and other factors that may have contributed to the incident. Further investigation is underway.