Tejashwi Yadav appears before ED in railway hotels money laundering case

Tejashwi Yadav on Tuesday appeared before the Enforcement Directorate in connection with railway hotels money laundering case.

The investigating officer of the case is expected to record the statement of the former Bihar deputy chief minister.

ED had registered a criminal case against the Lalu Prasad and his family members under the provisions of the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA).

Lalu’s wife and fomer Bhar chief minister Rabri Devi was also summoned on Wednesday. She has also been named in the Enforcement Case Information Report (ECIR).

The case dates back to the time when Lalu was the railway minister in the UPA government.

The CBI FIR alleges that Prasad, as railway minister, handed over the maintenance of two IRCTC hotels to a company after receiving a bribe in the form of prime land in Patna through a benami company owned by Sarla Gupta.

The FIR was registered on 5 July in connection with favours allegedly extended to Sujata Hotels in awarding a contract for the upkeep of the hotels in Ranchi and Puri and receiving premium land as quid pro quo.

The ED, under the PMLA, has powers to attach and confiscate tainted assets and it is expected that the agency will initiate such a move once it makes progress in the case.

With PTI inputs