Railways land-for-jobs case: ED files charge sheet against Lalu Prasad's family, others
New Delhi (PTI): The Enforcement Directorate on Tuesday filed its first charge sheet in the railways land-for-jobs linked money laundering case, naming former Bihar chief minister Rabri Devi and her MP daughter Misa Bharti among others, official sources said.
RJD chief Lalu Prasad Yadav's another daughter Hema Yadav (40), an alleged "close associate" of the Yadav family Amit Katyal (49), a former railway employee Hridayanand Chaudhary, two firms A K Infosystems Pvt. Ltd. and A B Exports Pvt. Ltd., through their common director Shariqul Bari, have also been named in the charge sheet.
The complaint arraying a total of seven accused has been filed before a special Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA) court in Delhi and the court has listed the matter to be heard on January 16, the sources said.
Katyal was arrested in this case by the ED in November last year while Lalu Prasad Yadav and his son and Bihar deputy CM Tejashwi Yadav were summoned by the agency but they have not deposed till now.
Rabri Devi (68), RJD Rajya Sabha MP Misa Bharti (47), and two other daughters of Lalu Yadav and Rabri Devi-- Chanda Yadav and Ragini Yadav-- have been questioned in this case by the ED.
The alleged scam pertains to the period when Prasad was the railway minister in the UPA-1 government.
It is alleged that from 2004 to 2009, several people were appointed to Group "D" positions in various zones of the Indian Railways and in lieu, these people transferred their land to the family members of the then railway minister Prasad and a linked company named A K Infosystems Private Limited.
A K Infosystems Private Limited is allegedly a "beneficiary company" in the case and its registered address in south Delhi's New Friends Colony was being used by Tejashwi Yadav, the ED had said earlier.
Katyal has been a director of this company, as per the agency.
A B Exports Pvt Ltd is a "shell" or fake company owned by Tejashwi Yadav and Chanda Yadav and its registered address is also the New Friends Colony located bungalow.
The ED alleged Rabri Devi and Hema Yadav sold four land parcels "illegally" acquired from appointees in the Railways to Meridian Construction India Ltd., a company related to Syed Abu Dojana, a former RJD MLA, and the "proceeds of crime" so obtained by Rabri Devi and Hema Yadav were further transferred through a maze of transactions to A B Exports Pvt Ltd and Bhagirathi Tubes respectively.
"Rabri Devi and Hema Yadav sold these land parcels for Rs 3.5 crore against the acquisition cost of Rs 7.5 lakh, thus deriving huge gains," the ED earlier claimed.
The money laundering case, filed under the criminal sections of the PMLA, stems from a complaint lodged by the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI). The CBI has filed a charge sheet in this case earlier.
Lalu Prasad, Rabri Devi and Tejashwi Yadav have been granted bail by a trial court in October in the CBI case.
According to the CBI, no advertisement or public notice was issued for appointment, but some residents of Patna were appointed as substitutes in different zonal railways in Mumbai, Jabalpur, Kolkata, Jaipur and Hazipur.
As a quid pro quo, the candidates, directly or through their immediate family members, allegedly sold land to Prasad's family members at highly discounted rates, up to one-fourth to one-fifth of the prevailing market rates, the CBI alleged.
Assets worth more than Rs 6 crore belonging to Rabri Devi, Misa Bharti and linked companies were attached by the ED last year as part of this investigation.
The agency had raided the premises of Chanda Yadav, Ragini Yadav, Hema Yadav, and Abu Dojana in Patna, Phulwari Sharif, Delhi-NCR, Ranchi and Mumbai in March 2023.
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Those questioning EVMs should demonstrate 'discrepancies' to EC: TMC's Abhishek Banerjee
New Delhi, Dec 16: Those raising questions on Electronic Voting Machines should give a demonstration of any "discrepancies" to the Election Commission, Trinamool Congress (TMC) leader Abhishek Banerjee said on Monday.
Banerjee's remarks come after Jammu and Kashmir Chief Minister Omar Abdullah, another leader of the INDIA bloc, dismissed the Congress' strong objections to EVMs, saying the party raises questions about their reliability only when it loses.
Asked about leaders from different INDIA bloc parties supporting Mamata Banerjee on the leadership issue, the TMC national general secretary told reporters that the alliance members will sit and discuss it.
"This is my personal opinion that those who are raising questions on the EVMs should show a demo of its discrepancies to the EC. They should show any video (as evidence) to the EC," Banerjee said to questions on the EVM issue.
The TMC leader said once there is proper monitoring during various stages of the polling process by booth workers and others, there is "nothing substantial" in these allegations.
"I have been conducting elections on-ground for a long time. If someone works well during EVM randomisation and the booth workers check EVMs during mock polls or review the form 17C, which is used to check ballot units or control units, during the counting of votes, I don't think there is anything substantial in these allegations [of EVM manipulation]," Banerjee said.
"Even after that, if someone feels that the EVMs can be manipulated, their delegation should visit the EC and show a demo or evidence proving that there is some malware or technology to hack EVMs," he said.
"If they are unable to do that, a movement or Andolan should be organised over the issue. Only making 2-3 statements regarding a matter does not mean anything," he said.
National Conference leader Omar Abdullah, in an exclusive interview to PTI, dismissed the objections to EVMs, saying it cannot be that the Congress celebrates its win in polls held through the machines while questioning their reliability when it loses.
Asked about several leaders from the opposition's INDIA bloc supporting Mamata Banerjee on the issue of leading the alliance, Abbhishek Banerjee said, "INDIA alliance will sit and discuss this. She is the senior-most leader. This is her third term as the chief minister and she has also been a Union Minister before as well. So there should be a detailed discussion regarding this."
The TMC said no party should be treated small, and regional parties should not be undermined.
"No party should be treated small. The TMC is the only party in the Indian alliance that has defeated the BJP as well as the Congress. This shows its strength," he said.
"Undermining regional parties is incorrect - this is a mistake which both the Congress and the BJP make. We have come here after being voted by the people. Though the number is 29, one should never undermine people," he said.
"The TMC reduced BJP MPs in Bengal. We have a good strike rate against them. The TMC is the only party where BJP leaders have joined unlike other scenarios where BJP poached leaders. We have seen how the BJP breaks parties, poaches leaders," Banerjee added.
West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee had recently said she could manage the dual responsibility of running the opposition front while continuing her role as the chief minister of West Bengal.
Her statement came amid disquiet in the INDIA bloc after the recent electoral setbacks for the Congress in Haryana, Jammu and Kashmir and Maharashtra. She found support from senior leaders like NCP (SP)'s Sharad Pawar, and RJD chief Lalu Prasad, among others.
