Lalu Prasad Yadav, Rabri Devi Plead Not Guilty as Delhi Court Frames Charges in ‘Land-for-Jobs’ Scam
New Delhi: All accused persons appeared in person before a Delhi court on Monday in the alleged land-for-jobs scam.
Former Railway Minister Lalu Prasad Yadav and his wife Rabri Devi denied the charges and stated they were prepared to contest the case in court.
Rashtriya Janata Dal MP Misa Bharti and her mother Rabri Devi were seen leaving their New Delhi residence for the court on Monday.
Charges Framed Against Them
The court has framed charges against Lalu Prasad Yadav, Rabri Devi, Misa Bharti, Hema Yadav, Tejashwi Prasad Yadav, Tej Pratap Yadav, Bhola Yadav, R.K. Mahajan, Premchand Gupta, and others under sections related to criminal conspiracy, cheating, and the Prevention of Corruption Act.
New Delhi, Staff Correspondent: The Rouse Avenue Court on Monday formally framed charges against former Railway Minister Lalu Prasad Yadav, his wife Rabri Dev, i and other accused in the land-for-jobs scam case.
Both appeared personally in court, denied the allegations, and said they would face trial. Lalu Prasad Yadav and Rabri Devi were present during the proceedings.
When Special Judge Vishal Gogne asked the accused whether they accepted guilt, they clearly denied the corruption and criminal conspiracy charges.
The court had earlier directed all accused to appear personally between February 1 and 25 for formal framing of charges.
In compliance with that order, Lalu, Rabri, and others appeared on Monday. Earlier, on February 9, Tejashwi Yadav had also appeared in court and refused to accept the charges against him.
The case has now been scheduled fora day-to-day hearing from March 9.
Charge Sheet Filed Against 103 Accused
The CBI registered the case on May 18, 2022, and filed two charge sheets and two supplementary charge sheets over time.
The agency had filed charges against a total of 103 accused. However, the court discharged 52 accused in the matter, while proceedings against five accused ended due to their death.
What the Case Is About
The case relates to allegations that land was taken in exchange for Group D railway jobs. On January 9, the court had already ordered framing of charges against Lalu Yadav, Rabri Devi, Tejashwi Yadav, Tej Pratap Yadav, Misa Bharti, and other accused.
The court observed that, prima fac, ie it appeared that Lalu Yadav had hatched a criminal conspiracy in which government jobs were used as a bargaining tool to acquire immovable property through family members.
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