Latest news with #Lalu
Time of India
2 hours ago
- Business
- Time of India
CBI: Lalu forced babus to appoint those who gifted him land for jobs
NEW DELHI: as the then railway minister exerted excessive pressure on ministry officials to clear the applications of Group-D job applicants who gifted land parcels or sold them at dirt cheap rates to him and his family in exchange for railway jobs, CBI told a Delhi court Monday. Tired of too many ads? go ad free now CBI has named 102 people as accused in the land-for-railway-jobs scam. Lalu's family acquired over 1 lakh sqft of land for just Rs 26 lakh against Rs 4.39 crore circle rate of the property, it alleged. The agency stressed the fact that multiple applications were cleared the same day while there was no advertisement for the vacancies. "Look at the speed. It is such a tedious process... How can so many applications in bulk be decided instantly? No justification was given to hire substitutes," special public prosecutor DP Singh told the court. CBI alleged discrepancies in the documents submitted by those given the jobs.
Indian Express
14 hours ago
- Politics
- Indian Express
Railway ministry exerted excess pressure to clear appointments of candidates who ‘gifted land to Lalu Prasad': CBI in ‘land-for-jobs' case
Officials with the Ministry of Railways exerted excessive pressure to clear the job applications of Group-D candidates who allegedly gifted land parcels to former Bihar chief minister Lalu Prasad and his family in exchange for railway jobs, the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) claimed before a Delhi court Monday. The CBI's case pertains to the alleged transfer of land at cheap rates to Lalu and his family in return for appointments made in Group-D substitute jobs in the Central Railway between 2004 and 2009, when Lalu was the Union railway minister. The agency has named 102 people as accused in the case which is currently at the stage of hearing arguments on charges. 'All of the applicants who applied for the jobs of substitutes (Group D railway jobs) came from the same state… How can this be?,' argued Senior Advocate and Special Public Prosecutor (SPP) D P Singh, who represented the CBI before Special Judge Vishal Gogne of Rouse Avenue Court. 'These were mostly poor people from Bihar who had land…procuring which could be of interest to Lalu and family,' he said. 'We have instances of cash payments…for these people, it was beneficial to secure a government job,' the SPP added. 'The same day, multiple applications were cleared. Look at the speed. It is such a tedious process… How did it happen so quickly,' Singh argued. 'We have approvers who tell us that the pressure (from the Ministry of Railways) was enormous… Most certificates were forged and never verified.' According to the CBI, Lalu 'influenced two officers of Central Railway…by virtue of his position as Minister of Railways…and got appointed the owners and family members of owners of the land parcels wherein he was having interest.' The CBI had earlier alleged that land parcels in Patna were transferred to Lalu and his family either by candidates (who wanted the jobs) or their family members. 'As a quid pro quo, the candidates directly or through their relatives or family members, sold land to Lalu Prasad Yadav at highly discounted rates up to 1/4th to 1/5th of the prevailing market rates,' the CBI's chargesheet said. In total, Lalu's family acquired over 1 lakh sq ft of land for only Rs 26 lakh (as against the circle rate of over Rs 4.39 crore), the central agency alleged. On Monday, SPP Singh argued before the court that substitutes are only hired on rare occasions. 'These substitutes are engaged only in the absence of non-regular employees…usually to fill a chain of Group D vacancies when people are on leave,' Singh said. 'There were no advertisements… No exigency was shown. No justification was given to hire substitutes. How can so many applications in bulk be decided instantly,' he said. As per the CBI, there were glaring discrepancies in the documents supplied by those who were given the jobs in this alleged scam. For instance, some candidates had sequential roll numbers on their caste and residence certificates, implying that the accused had obtained these certificates 'altogether and for a common purpose', the CBI alleged.
Indian Express
a day ago
- Politics
- Indian Express
RJD MP Sudhakar Singh backs Tej Pratap Yadav: ‘Marrying multiple times accepted in Hindu traditions … not a crime'
Tej Pratap Yadav who was expelled from the Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD) last week over his alleged extramarital relationship received support from party MP Sudhakar Singh on Monday. Defending party chief Lalu Prasad's elder son, whom the family has disowned, the Buxar MP and former state minister said marrying multiple times had been 'accepted' in Hindu traditions, and urged Lalu to accept his son's decision. 'Marriage is a personal matter, but I don't consider it a crime … We follow the footsteps of Ram Manohar Lohia who, in his book on Sapta Kranti, wrote that all relationships between a man and a woman are valid except for rape and deceit. If Tej Pratap ji has married again, I don't see it as an immoral act … I, personally, don't believe it is. In Hindu traditions, having two or even three to four marriages has been accepted, and we have heard of such cases. Even today, many such marriages take place,' Singh said. Referring to the late Lok Janshakti Party (LJP) chief Ram Vilas Paswan's second marriage, he said, 'Take (Union Minister) Chirag Paswan, for instance. He was born to Paswan's second wife. Many people have had two or three marriages, everyone knows this. It's neither a big deal nor is it a crime. As a father, Lalu Prasad should accept him.' Paswan married air hostess Reena Sharma, Chirag's mother, in 1983. In 2014, after his opponents challenged his Lok Sabha nomination papers about omitting his first wife's name, Paswan disclosed that he had divorced her in 1981. Singh argued that 'such instances are still not uncommon and should not be seen as a social evil'. Last week, a photo on Tej Pratap's official Facebook account showed him with a woman, with the caption claiming that he had been in a relationship with her for over 12 years. He later claimed that his account had been hacked. Soon afterwards, Lalu disowned his son and expelled him from the party for six years, citing his 'irresponsible behaviour' that does not align with the family's values. In 2018, Tej Pratap married Aishwarya Rai, the granddaughter of former Bihar CM Daroga Prasad Rai. But it did not last long and the two filed for divorce within a year. The matter is currently pending in a family court in Patna. Rai has accused Lalu of knowing all about Tej's affairs and still pushing for the marriage because of political reasons. Aishwarya called her estranged husband's expulsion 'election drama' before the Bihar Assembly polls scheduled to be held later this year. Tej Pratap, according to RJD insiders, has been at odds with his family since his brother Tejashwi Prasad Yadav's rise in the party. However, on Sunday, he posted on X, referring to himself as 'Krishna' to Tejashwi's 'Arjuna'. 'Those dreaming of separating me from my Arjuna, you will never succeed in your conspiracies. You may take Krishna's army, but not Krishna himself,' read the post. In the same post, he mentioned about 'traitors like Jaichand' inside and outside the party while claiming to 'soon expose every plot'. In another post on X the same day, he mentioned his parents, writing, 'My entire world is contained in just the two of you. You are greater than God to me, and any command you give is paramount… I only need your trust and love.'
United News of India
2 days ago
- Politics
- United News of India
Tej Pratap vows to expose those who conspired to separate him from Tejashwi
Patna, June 1 (UNI) Tej Pratap Yadav, elder son of RJD chief Lalu Prasad, who was recently expelled from the party following a controversial video posted by him with a girl on his Facebook account, vowed on Sunday to expose those who conspired to separate him from his younger brother Tejashwi Prasad Yadav, whom he described as his " Arjun " while he proclaimed himself to be Lord Krishna. Tej Pratap , who earlier in his post on X, expressed his love, affection, and respect for his parents and blamed "Jaychand-like elements for hatching a conspiracy to create a rift in the family, posted a fresh comment, this time for his younger brother Tejashwi Prasad Yadav. In his fresh post, Tej Pratap vowed to expose those who had conspired to separate him from his brother. " My brother is like my Arjun while I am his Krishna and my blessings will always remain with him ", Tej Pratap said adding that those conspired might take his Sena (Army) from him but he would always remain with him, a reference to Tejashwi. Tej Pratap cautioned Tejashwi that Jaychand like elements were present both inside home and outside. He advised Tejashwi to remain always alert from them and take care of parents. Earlier during the day, the elder son of Lalu had made a post on his social media account X, wishing good health and happiness for his parents. He had also cautioned them that "Jaychand " like elements were active to create a rift in the family. He had no desire but only to get blessings from his parents. Tej Pratap had posted a video on his Facebook account on May 25, with a girl Anushka Yadav, and claimed that he had been in a relationship with her for the last twelve years. It had triggered a major controversy in the family and also in the political circle as Tej Pratap was married to Aishwarya Rai, granddaughter of former Bihar Chief Minister Daroga Prasad Rai, in 2018. Their divorce petition is still pending in the court. Aishwarya had alleged that Lalu and all his family members were responsible for the gross injustice meted out to her. She was beaten, starved, and humiliated by family members of Lalu after her marriage, she had alleged. Leaders of all political parties had also criticised Lalu, saying his family members had no respect for dignity and sanctity of women. The slogan of social justice of Lalu was hollow, they had alleged. Lalu had expelled Tej Pratap for six years and also disowned him from the family after he posted the controversial video on his Facebook account. UNI KKS BD
United News of India
3 days ago
- Politics
- United News of India
Tej Pratap expresses respect for parents, says he is victim of conspiracy
Patna, June 1 (UNI) A week after his expulsion from the party and also being disowned by family members, Tej Pratap Yadav, elder son of RJD chief Lalu Prasad, said he had become a victim of a conspiracy hatched by Jaychand-like elements. Tej Pratap posted his comment expressing his emotions on the entire episode on his social media account " X ", saying he had full respect for his parents, Lalu Prasad and Rabri Devi. Without them, he was nothing and had no existence, he noted. " I have become a victim of a conspiracy hatched by Jaychand-like elements ", Tej Pratap said and wished a happy and healthy life for his parents. For him, his parents were the entire world, he remarked. " I seek only your blessings and nothing else. Both of you are like God for me ", Tej Pratap said in a post addressed to his parents. Just because of his father Lalu Prasad, RJD was there, and unfortunately, some Jaychand-like elements were also present, he pointed out. Tej Pratap had posted a video on his Facebook account on May 25, with a girl Anushka Yadav, and claimed that he had been in a relationship with her for the last twelve years. It had triggered a major controversy in the family and also in the political circle as Tej Pratap was married to Aishwarya Rai, granddaughter of former Bihar Chief Minister Daroga Prasad Rai, in 2018. Their divorce petition is still pending in the court. Aishwarya had alleged that Lalu and all his family members were responsible for the gross injustice meted out to her. She was beaten, starved, and humiliated by family members of Lalu after her marriage, she had alleged. Leaders of all political parties had also criticised Lalu, saying his family members had no respect for dignity and sanctity of women. Slogan of social justice for Lalu was hollow, they had alleged. Lalu had expelled Tej Pratap for six years and also disowned him from the family after he posted the controversial video on his Facebook account. UNI KKS BD
