The INDIA bloc has been alleging misuse of central agencies to target opposition parties.
Two months after they were granted bail in a related case, the Enforcement Directorate has summoned former Bihar chief minister Lalu Yadav and his son and Deputy Chief Minister Tejashwi Yadav in the alleged land-for-jobs scam. While Tejashwi has been summoned on Friday, Lalu has been asked to appear before the agency on December 27.
The Enforcement Directorate had questioned Tejashwi in April, but this is the first time it has summoned Lalu Yadav in connection with this case.
The land-for-jobs scam is also being investigated by the Central Bureau of Investigation and a Delhi court had, in October, granted bail to Lalu Yadav, his wife and former chief minister Rabri Devi and Tejashwi after the agency had filed its second chargesheet in the case.
Lalu Yadav is the chief of the Rashtriya Janata Dal, which is in power in Bihar as part of a coalition government that also consists of Nitish Kumar's Janata Dal (United), Congress and the Left parties. He is also seen as one of the architects of the opposition INDIA bloc, which was formed to take on the BJP in the Lok Sabha elections, which are scheduled to take place in less than four months.
The INDIA bloc has been alleging misuse of central agencies to target opposition parties. Aam Aadmi Party chief Arvind Kejriwal has also been summoned by the Enforcement Directorate on Thursday in connection with the Delhi liquor policy case.
What Is Land-For-Jobs?
The agencies have alleged that, during Lalu Yadav's tenure as the railway minister in the UPA government from 2004 to 2009, favoured candidates were appointed in the railways in violation of laid-down norms and without any advertisement or public notice. Some residents of Patna were appointed as substitutes in different zonal railways located in Mumbai, Jabalpur, Kolkata and Jaipur.
As a quid pro quo, the candidates allegedly sold land to some members of the Yadav family at highly discounted rates, going up to one-fifth the market rate in some cases.
The Yadav family has denied the allegations.