RJD MP demands CBI probe into murder of party worker near Buxar power plant

Time of India

03-07-2025

Buxar: RJD MP from Buxar, Sudhakar Singh, wrote a detailed letter to CBI director Praveen Sood on Thursday, demanding a high-level probe into the alleged corruption in a tender issued by SJVN Limited thermal power plant in Chausa, and a related murder.
In the letter, Singh stated that on May 26, Arjun Yadav, district president of the RJD labour cell, and a local contractor, was murdered at the main gate of the Chausa power plant.
According to a press briefing by the Buxar superintendent of police, held on June 21, the accused caught in the case confessed that the murder was linked to a coal tender dispute and that Yadav was exerting political pressure for its cancellation.
In the letter, Singh mentioned that he had submitted formal complaints to Union power minister Manohar Lal Khattar on March 18 and April 3, alleging serious irregularities in a tender issued on Feb 10.
Acting upon his complaints, the CBI had initiated an investigation, which ultimately led to the cancellation of the tender, and a fresh one was floated on May 29. Singh hailed the development as a moral victory in the fight against corruption, however, alleging that it came at a grave cost, that is murder of Yadav.
When contacted, SJVNL cheif executive officer Vikas Sharma said he was not aware of the matter. "The MP is entitled to express his views and make any allegations he deems appropriate," he told this reporter without refuting the accusations.
In the letter, Singh suggested a deeper conspiracy, potentially involving a Kolkata-based group previously flagged in his complaints. The MP alleged that this group is still active within the SJVN Buxar plant and may have orchestrated the murder to silence dissent and suppress evidence of wrongdoing.
He urged the govts of India and Bihar, and CBI to conduct an impartial and high-level investigation into the murder of Yadav, launch a special probe into the role of SJVN officials and the alleged Kolkata-based syndicate, and ensure strict action against all those found guilty of corruption or conspiracy.