Delhi HC notice on Tejashwi Yadav’s plea against framing of charges in IRCTC case

The Delhi high court on Tuesday issued notice in Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD) chief Lalu Prasad Yadav’s son Tejashwi Yadav’s petition challenging the trial court’s order framing charges against him in connection with the Indian Railway Catering and Tourism Corporation (IRCTC) hotels case.

A bench of justice Swarna Kanta Sharma asked the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) to file its response in Tejaswi’s petition against the trial court’s October 13 order and fixed January 14 as the next date of hearing. To be sure, the high court on January 14 will also hear Lalu’s petition against the same order.

“File your reply a day in advance,” justice Sharma said to CBI’s lawyer, DP Singh.

On October 13, the trial court framed charges of corruption, conspiracy and cheating against Lalu Prasad Yadav, his wife and former chief minister Rabri Devi, and their son, Tejashwi Yadav.

The trial court had observed that there was “grave suspicion” over their receipt of undervalued land parcels and shares from the Kochhar brothers— Vijay and Vinay Kochhar, through a firm named DMCPL.

“What elevates the suspicion to the grade of grave suspicion is that the land and share transactions were possibly an instance of crony capitalism fostered in the garb of eliciting private participation in the railway hotels... whereby commercial players ingratiated themselves to the then minister of railways by transferring their prime land at Patna to his wife and son,” the order read.

The case, investigated by the CBI, centres on alleged irregularities in the leasing of two IRCTC hotels — the BNR Hotels in Ranchi and Puri – to a private company, Sujata Hotels Pvt Ltd, owned by Vijay and Vinay Kochhar, during Lalu Prasad’s tenure as Union railway minister.

The agency alleges that the tender process was rigged to favour the Kochhars’ firm in exchange for land and company shares transferred to Lalu Prasad’s family at throwaway prices.

According to the CBI chargesheet, between 2004 and 2014, the BNR hotels were first transferred from the Railways to IRCTC and later leased out to Sujata Hotels for operations and maintenance. The agency alleges that the tender was manipulated to ensure Sujata Hotels’ selection, causing a loss to the public exchequer.

The Enforcement Directorate (ED) has also filed a money laundering case against Lalu Prasad, Rabri Devi, Tejashwi Yadav, and their daughter, based on the CBI’s findings.

Tejashwi’s petition before the high court, argued by senior advocates Kapil Sibal and Maninder Singh, stated that he had no direct or indirect involvement in the purchase of the land parcels by DMCPL or in the award of the tenders. It further claimed that the CBI had produced no evidence to show that he ever interacted with any of the co-accused in furtherance of an alleged criminal conspiracy or quid pro quo arrangement involving Lalu Prasad.

On Monday, the high court refused to immediately stay trial court proceedings against Lalu Yadav, remarking that the order framing charges against Lalu in the IRCTC hotel case had been passed on October 13, while the petition was filed only in January.