IRCTC scam: Delhi court grants regular bail to Rabri, Tejashwi

The Patiala House Court on Saturday granted regular bail to former Bihar chief minister Rabri Devi, her son Tejashwi Yadav and others, who were present at the hearing in the 2013 Indian Railway Catering and Tourism Corporation (IRCTC) scam in CBI Case.

However, Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD) chief Lalu Prasad's bail is pending as he did not appear before the court today citing health-related issues.

"He (Lalu Prasad) is admitted at RIMS, Ranchi, the doctors have declared him physically unfit to travel. Jail authorities have informed the court of his inability to appear before it today," RJD's Bhola Yadav told ANI.

 

Meanwhile, the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) opposed the bail of Rabri, Tejashwi, and other accused, stating that regular bail would 'hamper the case investigation'.

The court also granted interim bail to all the accused, who were present in the court in the case filed by the Enforcement Directorate (ED). All of them have been directed to furnish a personal bond of Rs 1 lakh with one like amount surety.

The court has fixed November 19 as the next date of hearing for both the cases. On this date, Lalu has to appear via video conferencing, court directed.

During the last hearing, the court had taken cognisance of the charge sheet filed by the ED and directs all the accused to make a personal appearance before the court.

The charge sheet had the names of former Bihar minister Prem Chand Gupta, his wife Sarala Gupta and additional member of the railway board, BK Agarwal, along with the Yadav family.

On August 31, the court had granted interim bail to Rabri, Tejashwi, and others in the case related to the scam in CBI case. The RJD chief's bail was pending as he could not appear before the court on account of health-related issues.

Lalu, who headed the Railway Ministry from 2004 to 2009, is facing charges of misusing his position in the allotment of a contract to a private company for the maintenance of two IRCTC hotels located at Puri and Ranchi.

The prosecution report had also stated that the two hotels of the Indian Railways were first transferred to IRCTC and was sub-leased to the Sujata Hotel Pvt. Ltd owned by Vijay and Vinay Kochhar for maintenance.