The Delhi High Court on Monday asked the Central Bureau of Investigation to respond to a petition filed by RJD leader Lalu Prasad Yadav challenging the framing of charges against him in the alleged IRCTC scam. While issuing notice, the court declined to halt the trial at this stage, saying it would first need to consider the agency’s reply.
The matter came up before Justice Swarna Kanta Sharma, who listed the case for further hearing on January 14. The court also took up Yadav’s application seeking a stay on the trial proceedings but made it clear that no interim relief could be granted without hearing the CBI.
Yadav has approached the high court against an October 13, 2025 order of the trial court that framed charges in the case against him, his wife Rabri Devi, his son Tejashwi Prasad Yadav, and 11 others. The charges relate to alleged offences of cheating and criminal conspiracy under the Indian Penal Code, along with provisions of the Prevention of Corruption Act.
In its order, the trial court had made sharp observations on the nature of the transactions under scrutiny, describing the land and share deals as “possibly an instance of crony capitalism fostered in the garb of eliciting private participation” in the operation of railway hotels at Ranchi and Puri.
Apart from Lalu Yadav, the trial court framed charges under Section 13(2) read with Sections 13(1)(d)(ii) and (iii) of the Prevention of Corruption Act against several other accused, including Pradeep Kumar Goel, Rakesh Saksena, Bhupendra Kumar Agarwal, Rakesh Kumar Gogia, and Vinod Kumar Asthana. These provisions deal with criminal misconduct by a public servant and abuse of official position to obtain undue advantage.
The court also ordered charges of cheating under Section 420 of the IPC to be framed against Lalu Prasad Yadav, Rabri Devi, Tejashwi Prasad Yadav, M/s LARA Projects LLP, Vijay Kochhar, Vinay Kochhar, Sarla Gupta, and Prem Chand Gupta. In addition, a common charge of criminal conspiracy under Section 120B IPC was directed against all 14 accused, read with the cheating provision and the relevant sections of the PC Act.
Under the Prevention of Corruption Act, the maximum punishment prescribed is 10 years of imprisonment, while the offence of cheating carries a maximum sentence of seven years.
