RJD chief Lalu Prasad, his wife Rabri Devi and their son and Bihar Deputy Chief Minister Tejashwi Yadav were on Wednesday granted bail by a court here in the alleged land-for-job scam in the railways. Special Judge Geetanjali Goel granted relief to the accused after they appeared before the court in pursuance of summons issued against them.
The CBI did not oppose their application moved by senior advocate Maninder Singh.
The judge noted that the accused were not arrested during the investigation and directed them to furnish a bail bond of Rs 50,000 each.
The central probe agency was also directed to supply copies of the charge sheet and other related documents to the accused.
The court had on September 22 summoned the accused after taking cognisance of the charge sheet filed against them and other accused, saying the evidence “prima facie” showed commission of various offences, including corruption, criminal conspiracy, cheating and forgery.
The agency had on July 3 filed a charge sheet in connection with the alleged scam.
Prasad is out on bail in this case as well as fodder scam cases.
It was the second charge sheet filed by the CBI in the case but the first in which Tejashwi Yadav has been named as an accused.
The case pertains to Group-D appointments made in West Central Zone of the railways based in Jabalpur, Madhya Pradesh during Lalu Prasad’s tenure as the railway minister from 2004 to 2009 in return for land parcels gifted or transferred by the recruits in the name of the RJD supremo’s family or associates, according to officials.
The agency registered the case on May 18, 2022 against the former Bihar chief minister and 15 others including his wife, two daughters, and unidentified public servants and private persons.
The CBI had filed the first charge sheet in the case in October last year against Lalu Prasad, Rabri Devi and others. It was related to appointments made in the Mumbai-headquartered Central Zone of the railways.
