New Delhi: Former railway minister Lalu Prasad Yadav exploited job-seekers from underprivileged backgrounds by making them transfer land parcels that were subsequently taken over by him and his family, the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) submitted in the Rouse Avenue Court in Delhi on Tuesday.
CBI’s claims were made during arguments on the framing of charges in the land-for-jobs scam before special judge Vishal Gogne. According to the agency, the alleged irregularities took place between 2004 and 2009, when Lalu was the railway minister.
During this period, railway jobs were purportedly offered in return for land gifts or sales at nominal prices by candidates or their relatives.
The CBI registered the case on May 18, 2022, naming Lalu, his wife Rabri Devi, sons Tejashwi Yadav and Tej Pratap Yadav, and daughter Hema Yadav. In addition, over 80 individuals, including public servants and private persons associated with the Ministry of Railways, have been named for allegedly facilitating illegal appointments across various railway zones.
“We have a clear cash trail. These people were seeking government jobs and willing to part with their land in return,” special public prosecutor D P Singh, told the court, adding that the candidates were primarily from Bihar and owned land that would be of benefit to Lalu and his family.
Singh also said that several officials had confirmed there was “enormous pressure from the top” of the Railway Ministry to approve these appointments. Many of the submitted documents, Singh argued, were forged or unverified. He questioned how so many candidates from one state could be selected from Group D posts in a single day.
“It is a tedious process, yet multiple applications were cleared at lightning speed. There was neither an advertisement nor any emergency justifying such mass hiring,” he said.
He also pointed out that the jobs were given as substitutes, a category normally reserved for temporary replacements in the absence of regular employees. “There’s no justification for hiring so many substitutes so quickly,” Singh said.
CBI has so far filed three charge sheets in the case. In March, the court took cognisance of the third charge sheet and summoned Lalu, his family members, and 78 other accused, including 30 government officials. All were granted bail on a bond of ₹50,000.
While taking cognizance, the trial court had observed that land had indeed been transferred to the Yadav family and that there was strong prima facie evidence indicating that railway officials had violated recruitment rules and guidelines to accommodate these candidates.
