NEW DELHI: Former Bihar Chief Minister and RJD Supremo, Lalu Prasad Yadav, has filed an appeal with the apex court challenging the Delhi High Court's order dismissing his plea seeking a stay on the Trial Court proceedings in a case related to land-for-jobs scam.
According to the causelist of the top court, a two-Judge Bench headed by Justice M M Sundresh and Justice N. Kotiswar Singh is scheduled to hear Yadav's appeal on July 18.
On May 29, the Delhi HC said -- while dismissing Yadav's petition for stay of the trial in the land-for-jobs scam case -- that there was no compelling reason to stay the proceedings against the RJD (Rashtriya Janta Dal) leader.
Earlier, the HC had issued notice to the CBI (Central Bureau of Investigation) on Yadav's plea for quashing of the CBI FIR and posted the hearing on August 12.
The CBI had registered the case on May 18, 2022, alleging that between 2004 and 2009, Yadav had allegedly exploited his ministerial position to secure land transfers for his family in exchange for Group "D" railway jobs.
Notably, these appointments were made without any public job advertisements. Investigations revealed that senior officials in the West Central Railways (WCR) facilitated these appointments under Yadav’s direction.
According to the CBI, these appointments did not align with the Indian Railways' established standards and guidelines for recruitment.
The CBI also conducted searches across multiple locations, including Delhi and Bihar, to gather evidence.
On June 7, the CBI filed a detailed charge-sheet against Yadav, his family members, and 77 other persons, including 38 job seekers.
The court had previously expressed concerns over delays in the investigation and mandated the CBI to present its final charge sheet promptly.
In October last year, the court had granted bail to Lalu Prasad Yadav and his sons in a related case registered by the Enforcement Directorate (ED).
The former CM, seeking stay of the trial, said that the First Information Report (FIR) was lodged in 2022 -- almost a 14-year delay -- despite the CBI's initial enquiries and investigations being closed after filing of closure report before the competent court.
Claiming innocence in the case, Yadav, in his appeal, said the initiation of the fresh investigation was nothing but an abuse of the process of law.
"I am being made to suffer through an illegal, motivated investigation, in violation of his fundamental right to a fair investigation," Yadav said.