Land-for-jobs case: CBI searches premises linked to ex-RJD MLA

The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) on Tuesday conducted searches at nine locations in Bihar’s Patna and Bhojpur linked to former RJD (Rashtriya Janata Dal) MLA Arun Yadav and his wife Kiran Devi, currently an MLA, in connection with the alleged land-for-jobs scam, officials in the probe agency said.

CBi sleuths also conducted searches at the premises of Rajya Sabha MP Prem Chand Gupta in Noida, Delhi and Gurugram in the same case.

The alleged scam occurred when Lalu Prasad was railway minister between 2004 and 2009. It’s alleged that Prasad doled out railway jobs and in return, the beneficiaries transferred plots of land in the name of the minister and his family members for prices much lower than the circle rates prevailing then.

CBI filed the charge sheet in October last year, against former Lalu Prasad, Rabri Devi, their daughter Misa Bharti and 13 others in the case.

On Tuesday, a CBI team searched the house of Kiran Devi at Agiaon village in Bhojpur district while another team searched at her official residence in Patna.

Earlier, on January 13, CBI was granted sanction to prosecute Lalu Prasad in the case.

Arun Yadav, who was also accused of raping a minor, was acquitted by a special court in Ara on December 13, 2022, after the witnesses as well as the girl turned hostile.