Shillong: The Delhi High Court stepped into the IRCTC hotel scam case on Thursday. Justice Sachin Datta issued a notice to the Enforcement Directorate regarding a plea from Rashtriya Janata Dal chief Lalu Prasad Yadav. The RJD boss wants to scrap a trial court order that frames money laundering charges against him. The court granted Yadav the right to pause proceedings at the trial level until the next hearing on December 3.
Special Judge Vishal Gogne of the Rouse Avenue Courts set the charges in September. He ruled that a prima facie case exists against Yadav, his wife Rabri Devi, and his son Tejashwi Yadav. The judge discharged seven other individuals. The dispute traces back to Yadav’s stint as Union Railway Minister from 2004 to 2009. The Enforcement Directorate claims contracts for hotel maintenance went to a private firm tied to the RJD leader’s inner circle. Officials allege the family gained three acres of prime land through a benami company in exchange for these favors.
The ED investigation follows a predicate offense registered by the Central Bureau of Investigation. The High Court currently reviews separate criminal revision petitions from the Yadav family. Those petitions challenge charges of corruption, criminal conspiracy, and cheating filed by the CBI. Yadav has consistently denied all wrongdoing. He maintains that the "tenders for the IRCTC hotels were awarded in a fair and transparent manner."
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