Court to consider chargesheet in IRCTC case on July 30

A court here on Friday reserved order on summoning of former Railway Minister Lalu Prasad, his wife Rabri Devi, son Tejashwi Yadav and others in connection with the 2006 IRCTC hotels maintenance contract case.

Special Judge Arvind Kumar said the court would decide on taking cognisance of the charge-sheet on July 30.

The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) in April filed the charge-sheet in the Indian Railway Catering and Tourism Corporation (IRCTC) hotels maintenance contract case against 12 people and two companies.

Lalu Prasad, his wife and former Bihar Chief Minister Rabri Devi, his son and former Deputy Chief Minister Tejashwi Yadav, former Managing Director of IRCTC P.K. Goel, Sujata Hotels directors Vinay and Vijay Kochhar, Sarala Gupta - wife of Prem Chand Gupta, a Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD) MP - and Lara Projects LLP have been charge-sheeted.

Besides, the CBI charge-sheet also named Additional Member of the Railway Board B.K. Agarwal, who was then Group General Manager (GGM) of the IRCTC.

The CBI also charge-sheeted former GGM of IRCTC V.K. Asthana, R.K. Gogia - then GGM (company secretary) of IRCTC, Ramesh Saxena - then IRCTC Director, and Sujata Hotels Pvt Ltd.

The CBI on July 5, 2017 filed a corruption case against Rabri Devi, Lalu Prasad and Tejashwi Yadav for alleged irregularities in the allotment of contracts of two IRCTC hotels in Ranchi and Puri in 2006 to a private firm.

The contracts were given to Sujata Hotels, a company owned by Vijay and Vinay Kochhar, in lieu of a bribe in the form of a three-acre commercial plot at a prime location in Patna district.

--IANS

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