THE JHARKHAND STORY DESK
New Delhi, Sept 24: The Rouse Avenue Court has scheduled October 13 to pronounce its order on framing charges in the IRCTC hotel corruption case.
The court has directed all accused, including former Railway Minister Lalu Prasad Yadav, his wife Rabri Devi, son Tejaswi Yadav, former Minister Prem Chand Gupta, and 10 others, to appear in person on the hearing date.
The case revolves around allegations of irregularities and corruption in the allotment of maintenance contracts for two IRCTC hotels—BNR Ranchi and BNR Puri—during Lalu Prasad Yadav’s tenure as Railway Minister from 2004 to 2009.
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The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) has claimed that these contracts were transferred to Sujata Hotel, a private firm owned by Vijay and Vinay Kochar. In return, Lalu Prasad Yadav allegedly received three acres of prime land through a benami company.
The CBI filed the FIR in July 2017 and had conducted raids at 12 locations connected to Lalu Prasad Yadav and his family across Patna, New Delhi, Ranchi, and Gurgaon. The agency has maintained that there is sufficient evidence to frame charges of corruption and criminal conspiracy against all the accused.
On March 1, 2025, the CBI concluded its arguments before Special Judge Vishal Gogne, supported by Special Public Prosecutor D.P. Singh and Advocate Manu Mishra.
The prosecution argued that the accused engaged in corruption and conspiracy in the allotment of the hotel maintenance contracts to benefit the private company.
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The court had reserved its order on May 29 after hearing arguments from both the prosecution and the defence.
This case, involving a total of 14 accused, has drawn significant public attention due to the prominence of the individuals involved and the alleged misuse of public office during the period of 2004–2009.
