ED Interrogates Lalu Yadav for Nine Hours in Land Regarding Jobs Case; RJD Claims "PM Modi Is Terrified"

Lalu Yadav's family, especially his daughter Misa Bharti, reacted strongly to the ED's protracted questioning of him, denouncing the activities as a sign of Prime Minister Modi's anxiety.

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PATNA: The Enforcement Directorate (ED) questioned Lalu Prasad Yadav, the former chief minister of Bihar and leader of the Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD), extensively for almost nine hours on Monday in relation to the Land-for-Jobs scam case. His family, especially his daughter Misa Bharti, reacted strongly to the protracted interrogation, denouncing the acts as evidence of Prime Minister Modi's anxiety.

Bharti attacked the Centre, suggesting that the investigation agency's activities against her father were a reflection of intimidation techniques used by the central government. "Someone has to feed Lalu because he is unable to eat for himself. It is unknown to us if he has consumed any food. Nobody from the ED is prepared to talk.The PM is afraid of the impending elections and will only act in this way. It is possible for the authorities to detain my father as well, but Misa questioned the benefit of detaining a sick person.

After Yadav was questioned, a sizable contingent of RJD backers gathered in front of the investigation agency's Patna headquarters to show support for him. Bharti surmised that the PM was acting so aggressively because of a supposed dread of the impending elections. She underlined how pointless it is to use sick people as political footballs.

Workers from the RJD shared Bharti's feelings when they said that the government was using intimidation to prevent them from implementing their 2024 election plans. Manoj Kumar Jha, a Rajya Sabha MP for the RJD, charged that the BJP was behind politically motivated summonses, referring to them as the BJP's acts rather than ED summonses.

The BJP, which is currently a member of the state administration headed by Nitish Kumar, retaliated by accusing the RJD of having pervasive corruption within its ranks. The nation's citizens are aware of Lalu Yadav's corruption. To them, corruption is a precious gem. Former head of the Bihar BJP unit and current state deputy chief minister Samrat Chowdhary expressed his desire for Tejashwi Yadav to "teach the youth of Bihar the system of how to become millionaires within one and a half years."

Misa Bharti and other relatives of Yadav bemoaned their supposed abuse, alleging they were not allowed to go with Yadav when he was being questioned in the ED. Yadav's family brought attention to his fragile health status and his susceptibilities to medical complications, especially after a kidney donation. After saying prayers at Shakti Dham Temple, Misa remarked, "People across the country know that Lalu ji is not well. He has undergone a kidney transplant, he is suffering from many diseases, and the biggest one is the age factor."

Charges Against Lalu Yadav:
Yadav is being investigated for his alleged participation in the Land for Jobs scandal, which is said to have occurred between 2004 and 2009 while he served as the Railway Minister. The chargesheet names the then-Railway General Manager in addition to the RJD national president. Lalu Prasad Yadav allegedly transferred land owned by candidates and their families in the names of his wife Rabri Devi and daughter Misa Bharti for sale consideration, which was significantly less than the prevailing circle rates as well as the prevailing market rates, rather than getting them appointed in the Railways.

In the land-for-jobs scandal, the CBI filed charges in October of last year against 13 other people as well as former Bihar chief ministers Lalu Prasad, Rabri Devi, and their daughter Misa Bharti. The CBI claims that the individuals were initially hired by the Railways as stand-ins for Group D positions and were then regularized after their families struck a land transaction. The claims that a person accepted land for a bribe instead of a position in the Railways are being looked into by the CBI.

In parallel, the ED is looking into the money laundering case. In this instance, a chargesheet was also filed by the CBI. Allegations in the case range from possible money laundering operations to land-for-job bribery schemes, which the CBI and ED are looking into concurrently. Chargesheets against Yadav and a number of other participants in the purported scheme have been submitted.