PATNA: Sleuths of the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) conducted raids at the premises of five prominent Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD) leaders in Bihar in connection with the IRCTC land-for-jobs scam. For the first time, raiding teams of the central agency were accompanied by central para-military forces.
The raids were carried out at the premises of MLC Sunil Singh, Rajya Sabha MP Asfaq Karim, Rajya Sabha MP Fayyaz Ahmed, ex-MLC Subodh Rai and former MLA Abu Dojana in Patna, Madhubani and Katihar.
Searches were also conducted at a mall in Gurugram, reportedly owned by deputy chief minister Tejashwi Prasad Yadav.
The raids coincided with the trust vote of the newly-installed Grand Alliance government or mahagathbandhan on the floor of Bihar legislative. The new alliance comprises seven parties, including RJD, JD(U), Congress, CPI-ML, CPI, CPI(M) and HAM.
The raiding team had to face ire of supporters of RJD MLC Sunil Singh, who is considered close to RJD chief Lalu Prasad. The supporters of the MLC in question staged a dharna outside the residence of Singh and raised slogans against the central investigating agency.
Slogans like ‘CBI go back’, ‘CBI haay haay’ and ‘CBI ki gundagardi nahi chalegi’ reverberated in the air. The local police had a tough time ensuring the safe exit of the 10-member raiding team from the house of Singh, who is also chairman of BISCOMAUN.
Singh’s proximity with the Lalu family can be gauged from the fact that he also works as an adviser to former chief minister Rabri Devi.
In addition, he is the treasurer of RJD. A CBI team reached Singh’s residence located near J D Women’s College at Bailey Road in the state capital.
Another team of CBI officials raided the official residence of Rajya Sabha MP Asfaq Karim in Katihar. The team reached the house of Karim with personnel of the central reserve police force. Another team raided the residence of Fayyaz Ahmed, Rajya Sabha MP, in Madhubani.
A separate CBI team also raided the premises of former MLC Subodh Rai and former MLA Abu Dujana. Sources said that officials of the Enforcement Directorate were also pressed into service for the search operation.
Reacting to CBI raids at premises of RJD leaders, former CM Rabri Devi said that BJP ensured the operation against the targeted leaders as they (BJP) were scared of the strength of Mahagathbandhan in Bihar. “This is the conspiracy of Narendra Modi government. But we are not afraid of CBI or ED or any central agency,” she said.
JD(U) too extended its support to its ally on the issue. “They are misusing the central agencies like CBI and ED to obtain their political objectives. But they will never succeed. People are watching every action of the central government,” JD(U) MLC Neeraj Kumar said.
BJP, however, defended the CBI operation. “The investigating agency is doing its job. If somebody has not committed any fraud, there is no need to worry about,” BJP leader Nitin Nabin told the media. Corroborating his remarks, BJP state chief Sanjay Jaiswal said, “BJP neither frames anyone nor saves. CM Nitish Kumar had complained before the CBI and raids were conducted today. So he is answerable to them and not us.”
Bihar Deputy Chief Minister Tejashwi Yadav on Wednesday denied that his family has any stake in a mall at Gurugram, which was among the many places raided by CBI in connection with a land for jobs scam.
The RJD heir apparent, talking to reporters outside the state assembly, waved a bunch of printouts and whipped out his phone to show a photograph and claimed that the real estate company which was developing the shopping complex enjoyed the patronage of Manohar Lal Khattar, the Chief Minister of BJP-ruled Haryana.
"I had said on the floor of the House that the project was inaugurated by a BJP MP. But now it turns out that it was none other than the Haryana CM himself," alleged Yadav.
The young leader who was upbeat over the "Mahagathbandhan" (Grand Alliance), helmed by his party, having won a trust vote, repeated the "teen jamaai" (three sons-in-law) jibe at the BJP.
He alleged that three agencies - ED, CBI and the Income Tax department - were being used by the party ruling the Centre to get even with political opponents.
"Today is a historic day when the entire country is looking at us with hope. Let them carry out as many raids as possible, the tone has been set for the 2024 Lok Sabha polls," said Yadav.
The BJP does not tire of bragging about NDA having won all but one of the 40 Lok Sabha seats in Bihar in the last general elections, but it will not be able to win a single constituency in the next poll, he asserted.
"Raids are being conducted (on premises of a number of RJD leaders) and my name was being dragged into the matter. The intention was clear, to cause demoralisation on a day we were faced with a historic trust vote," he said.
Earlier, the young leader had rankled the BJP members with repeated use of the "teen jamaai" barb which evoked angry protests, followed by an assurance from Deputy Speaker Maheshwar Hazari that he will get the remark expunged "if the rulebook suggests it is unparliamentary".
Chief Minister Nitish Kumar, who sat beside Yadav, could be seen chuckling numerous times as the RJD leader tore into state leaders of the BJP whom he accused of being "tongue-tied when faced with your leaders in Delhi".
Yadav, a former cricketer, also latched on to a remark made earlier by BJP leader Tarkishor Prasad, who preceded him as Deputy CM.
Prasad had compared Kumar to "a batsman who safely stays on the crease, making the one at the other end get run out".
The allusion was to Kumar "remaining the CM, even though his deputies keep changing".
Dismissing Prasad's contention that Kumar, who has made many political volte-face, could ditch the RJD in future, Yadav said, "Let me tell you, ours is going to be an unbroken partnership."
It will remain not out.
A court in Bihar's Hajipur on Wednesday acquitted RJD supremo Lalu Prasad Yadav in a 2015 case pertaining to the former chief minister allegedly making caste-based remarks and violating the Model Code of Conduct during assembly elections.
The court of Additional Chief Judicial Magistrate (Hajipur), Smita Raj, acquitted Yadav of all charges due to lack of substantive evidence.
"When the court pronounced its verdict, my client was present inside the courtroom. He remained inside the courtroom for 10 minutes," Shyam Babu, lawyer of the RJD chief, told reporters.
"Previously, when my client's statement was recorded before the court on June 16, he had denied the charges levelled against him in the FIR pertaining to the case.
Yadav had pleaded innocence before the court on that date and said that he did not use any word that would hurt anyone," the lawyer said.
The case pertains to Yadav's election campaign during the 2015 assembly polls in the state.
Launching the party's campaign from Raghopur on September 27, 2015, the RJD supremo had allegedly described the assembly elections as a direct fight between the "backward castes and forward castes" and gave a call to Yadavs and other backward castes to rally behind the RJD-led alliance to defeat the BJP-led NDA.
Later, an FIR was registered with the Ganga Bridge Police Station on the basis of the statement of the then circle officer, who was deputed as the magistrate during the election meeting of the RJD chief for his son and party nominee Tejashwi Yadav in Raghopur.
(With PTI Inputs)