The CBI has informed a Delhi court that senior officials in the Ministry of Railways applied undue pressure to expedite job appointments for candidates who allegedly transferred land to former Union Railway Minister Lalu Prasad Yadav and his family at undervalued rates.
The allegations relate to appointments made in Group-D substitute posts in Central Railway between 2004 and 2009, during Lalu’s tenure as the Railway Minister.
According to the CBI, this was part of a larger “land-for-jobs” scheme in which candidates gave up their land in exchange for government employment.
Presenting the case before Special Judge Vishal Gogne at Rouse Avenue Court, Senior Advocate and Special Public Prosecutor (SPP) D P Singh emphasised the unusual circumstances under which these appointments were made.
“All of the applicants who applied for the jobs of substitutes (Group D railway jobs) came from the same state… How can this be?” Singh questioned. He noted that these individuals, mostly from Bihar, possessed land that may have been of particular interest to Lalu and his family. “We have instances of cash payments…for these people, it was beneficial to secure a government job,” Singh added.
Highlighting the unusual speed of the recruitment process, Singh said, “The same day, multiple applications were cleared. Look at the speed. It is such a tedious process… How did it happen so quickly.” He added that approvers have confirmed the intense pressure from the Railway Ministry, and alleged that many of the certificates submitted were forged and went unverified.
The CBI chargesheet claims that Lalu, leveraging his ministerial position, influenced two Central Railway officials to appoint individuals or their relatives who had transferred land to him and his family. The land transfers were allegedly made at prices significantly below market value — in some cases as low as one-fourth or one-fifth of the actual rate.
“As a quid pro quo, the candidates directly or through their relatives or family members, sold land to Lalu Prasad Yadav at highly discounted rates up to 1/4th to 1/5th of the prevailing market rates,” the CBI said. The agency estimates that Lalu’s family acquired over 1 lakh square feet of land for just Rs 26 lakh, while the circle rate at the time was valued at over Rs 4.39 crore.
Singh further argued that hiring substitute workers was supposed to be an exception, used only in cases where regular employees were unavailable. “These substitutes are engaged only in the absence of non-regular employees…usually to fill a chain of Group D vacancies when people are on leave,” he explained.
However, he noted that no public advertisements or emergency justifications were provided to support the mass hiring. “There were no advertisements… No exigency was shown. No justification was given to hire substitutes. How can so many applications in bulk be decided instantly,” he said.
The CBI also pointed to irregularities in submitted documents, stating that many candidates had caste and residence certificates with sequential roll numbers — a detail suggesting the certificates were likely obtained together for a common objective.
The case involves 102 accused individuals and is currently at the stage of hearing arguments on the framing of charges.