The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) has reopened a corruption investigation against former Chief Minister Lalu Prasad Yadav, months after his party allied with Nitish Kumar’s Janata Dal United (JDU) to form the government in Bihar. This is expected to spark a political storm.
When Mr Yadav was part of the UPA-1 administration, the CBI launched an investigation into charges of corruption in the allocation of railway projects.
This inquiry has been closed in May 2021, with CBI sources noting that “no case has been formed out of the claims”. In addition to Mr Yadav, his son and Bihar’s Deputy Chief Minister Tejashwi Yadav, as well as his daughters Chanda and Ragini Yadav, are named in the suit.
The CBI’s decision to reopen the investigation comes months after Nitish Kumar broke with the BJP in Bihar and formed a coalition the with Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD). Mr Kumar then claimed that the BJP has been trying to divide his party.
The CBI’s new decision is expected to cause a massive political uproar, as opposition parties repeat their allegations of the BJP-led central government misusing investigative institutions.
Based on the case, Mr Yadav accepted a south Delhi home as a bribe from the DLF Group, which was engaged in rail land leasing projects in Mumbai’s Bandra and the renovation of the New Delhi Railway Station.
According to reports, the property was purchased by a DLF-funded shell company at a much lower price than the market rate at the time. The shell firm was then purchased for a price by Tejashwi Yadav and other relatives of Mr Yadav, granting them ownership of the south Delhi home, based on the case.
