CBI selectively targeting Lalu Yadav, family: Lawyer argues in land-for-jobs case

Former Bihar Chief Minister Lalu Prasad Yadav is being selectively targeted by the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) in the land-for-jobs case, his lawyer alleged before a Delhi court on Friday. The arguments came just days after the Supreme Court refused to stay the trial proceedings against Lalu Yadav in the case.

Senior advocate Maninder Singh, representing Yadav, claimed the CBI was "cherry-picking" evidence to build a case against the Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD) chief and his family. He questioned the link between land deals and railway jobs, arguing that the two events were separated by several years.

"How can the agency connect land sales with job allotments when they happened years apart?" Singh asked, adding, "In three days, the Pacific Ocean changed due to the tsunami." Multiple years is a long-long time to wait".

The case pertains to the alleged irregularities in Group D appointments in the Indian Railways during Yadav’s tenure as the Railway Minister from 2004 to 2009 under the UPA-I government. According to the chargesheet filed in the case by the CBI, candidates were appointed in return for land parcels that were transferred to Yadav’s family or close aides by the recruits.

Singh pointed out that while there were 103 accused in the case, the chargesheet only mentioned 12 land parcels. He also questioned whether any land seller told the CBI that they were pressured by Yadav.

The CBI filed its third and final chargesheet in June this year before the Rouse Avenue Court in Delhi, naming 78 accused, including Lalu Prasad Yadav, his wife Rabri Devi, son Tej Pratap Yadav (charged for the first time), daughter Hema Yadav, former Officer on Special Duty (OSD) Bhola Yadav, and a former RJD staffer.

Charges include criminal conspiracy, cheating, and forgery under the Indian Penal Code (IPC), along with provisions of the Prevention of Corruption Act.

Notably, in May this year, the President granted the Enforcement Directorate (ED) sanction to prosecute Yadav in the case.

The ED had launched its probe based on the original CBI FIR, which alleged that job aspirants were coerced into transferring land to Yadav’s family in exchange for employment.

Yadav's lawyer accused the agency of trying to "dig deep" in order to widen the case against his client and his family.

The court is currently hearing arguments on whether to take cognisance of the latest chargesheet filed by the CBI in the case.

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