CBI summons Lalu and son Tejashwi
The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) on Thursday issued fresh summons to Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD) leader Lalu Prasad and his son Tejashwi Prasad Yadav, former deputy chief minister of Bihar, in connection with irregularities in awarding contracts during Lalu’s tenure as the railway minister (2004-09).
While Prasad was asked to appear before the CBI in New Delhi on September 11, son Tejashwi had to appear on September 12. The news of the CBI summons came when Prasad was in Ranchi to appear in court in connection with the animal husbandry scam trial. Prasad – convicted in the fodder scam – continues to face legal troubles.
One of the five fodder cases has been reopened. And following a Supreme Court order to complete the trial within nine months, the court has begun hearing the cases on priority basis. Lalu has had to travel to Jharkhand to appear before the court on a weekly basis.
Reacting to the CBI summon, RJD spokesperson Shakti Singh Yadav said the government was adopting different yardsticks in dealing with Prasad and those guilty of swindling public money in the Rs 1,300 crore Srijan government fund transfer scandal in Bihar. He questioned why the Central government did not show the same alacrity in acting against the accused in the Srijan scam. The CBI had searched the homes and properties of Prasad and his family on July 7 as part of investigations into alleged irregularities in leasing out railway hotels when the RJD chief was the rail minister.
The raids were carried out at 12 locations in five cities a day after the CBI filed cases against Prasad, his wife Rabri Devi and son Tejashwi, among others.
Prasad cried conspiracy, saying he was being targeted for uniting the opposition against the Modi government.
However, JD(U) spokesperson Sanjay Singh on Thursday said the CBI action was not part of any political conspiracy. Taking potshots at the RJD chief, he said Prasad’s name should be entered into the Guinness Book of World Records for amassing huge benami property. There are a spate of allegations against Lalu and his family members.
The Income Tax department had recently raided 22 locations in New Delhi and adjoining places, related to land and farm houses owned by Lalu’s daughter, Misa Bharti and her husband Shailesh Kumar. After questioning by the Enforcement Directorate, it provisionally attached a farm house (26, Palam Farms, Bijwasan, in New Delhi) on September 5. His son and deputy chief minister Tejashwi Yadav is alleged to hold big stakes in a company promoting Bihar’s biggest mall in the state capital worth Rs 750 crore. Another son Tej Pratap is alleged to hold big tracts of land; and daughters – Misa, Hema and Ragini – have been accused of being directors in many shell companies. return to the system. That would have reduced RBI’s liability and boosted its profits, allowing it to transfer more funds to the government for new investments and development work.
That didn’t happen. As a result, the RBI, which has had to absorb most of this now-legit cash, pays interest on it, Rajan said, adding it probably played a role in almost halving the central bank’s profit through FY 2016-17 from a year earlier. RBI’s financial year runs from August to July.
“I point this out because this something people misinterpret. They are saying we have formalised the savings. The savings were always there. They were just financing the government free of cost,” Rajan said.
Rajan was talking to Hindustan Times on his new book – I do what I do – in which he has said neither he nor the RBI under his watch favoured demonetization. their mother about a person moving about suspiciously near her house. “Gauri used to come to my house on weekends. After she left home on Sunday, she told my mother that there was a person moving suspiciously near her house. However, since it was one person, it appears Gauri did not take it seriously.”
Kavita and Indrajit said they wanted justice and did not have any preference which agency probed the case. After the press meet, Indrajit, however, said he would “personally” prefer a CBI probe.
The siblings convened the press meet a day after a Karnataka government-appointed SIT started its probe into the murder and visited Lankesh’s home.
The journalist was shot when she was entering her home in the city’s busy Rajarajeshwari Nagar.
An officer involved in the investigation said, “CCTV footage only shows a person wearing a helmet committing the crime. There is no vehicle or any other means of identifying the perpetrators.” Dhanbad Manoj Krishna Akhauri said. Further probe into the matter is underway.
This is the third such derailment in the state in less than a month.
On August 19, the Utkal Express had derailed in Muzaffarnagar district, killing 22 people.
On August 23, about 100 passengers were wounded when 10 coaches of Kaifiyat Express train derailed in Auraiya district. the city, Bollywood stars Shah Rukh Khan and Anushka Sharma relished Banarsi paan at shop here. The shopkeeper now sells Shah Rukh Khan special Banarasi paan and its demand is very high.