Will a Delhi Court Transfer Rabri Devi's Corruption Cases?
Synopsis
Key Takeaways
New Delhi, Nov 28 (NationPress) A Delhi court has served notices to the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) and the Enforcement Directorate (ED) regarding transfer requests made by former Bihar Chief Minister Rabri Devi. She is seeking to relocate three ongoing corruption and money laundering cases away from the court of Special Judge Vishal Gogne.
The Rouse Avenue Courts have requested responses from both federal agencies and scheduled a hearing for December 6 to discuss these applications. The transfer requests involve the CBI's land-for-jobs case, as well as the ED's money laundering investigations connected to that FIR and the IRCTC hotel scam.
Previously, on Wednesday, Principal District and Sessions Judge-cum-Special Judge (PC Act) Dinesh Bhatt asked the CBI to respond to a similar plea regarding the transfer of the IRCTC scam case from Judge Gogne's court.
In her plea, Rabri Devi argues that Judge Gogne’s actions during multiple hearings have instilled a “reasonable apprehension of bias” in her.
“The conduct of the Ld. Special Judge on various occasions throughout the proceedings in these cases appears to be disproportionately favorable to the prosecution and biased, as evidenced by several instances within the case proceedings/orders themselves,” the transfer plea contends, adding that her concerns are based on specific occurrences rather than mere speculation.
Rabri Devi has requested that the cases be transferred to another court “to uphold justice, equity, and fair play.”
The IRCTC hotel scam case, where charges under Sections 420 and 120B of the Indian Penal Code and the Prevention of Corruption Act were to be framed last month, involves alleged improper lease agreements for IRCTC hotels from 2004 to 2009, during which Lalu Prasad served as the Union Railway Minister.
In the CBI’s land-for-jobs inquiry, the agency alleges that candidates vying for Group-D roles in the Railways transferred land to Lalu Prasad’s family members or front companies in return for employment.
The ED claims its linked money laundering case involves transactions that generated proceeds of crime, subsequently obscured through various entities.
All four transfer requests—the IRCTC scam, the land-for-jobs case, and the two associated ED matters—are set to be addressed on December 6.