New Delhi, Jan 3 (NationPress) Former Bihar Chief Minister Lalu Prasad Yadav has approached the Delhi High Court to contest a trial court's ruling that mandated the framing of criminal charges against him and his family in the alleged IRCTC hotel scam case.

The leader of the Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD), Yadav has lodged a criminal revision petition disputing the order issued by the Rouse Avenue Court, which identified sufficient grounds to advance proceedings against the accused for crimes associated with corruption, criminal conspiracy, and cheating.

According to the causelist available on the Delhi HC website, the case is set for hearing before a single-judge Bench led by Justice Swarana Kanta Sharma on January 5.

In a ruling delivered on October 13, 2025, Special Judge (PC Act) Vishal Gogne of the Rouse Avenue Courts allowed the trial of Lalu Prasad Yadav, his son Tejashwi Yadav, his wife Rabri Devi, and other co-accused under Sections 420 (cheating) and 120B (criminal conspiracy) of the Indian Penal Code (IPC), as well as the Prevention of Corruption Act, after they denied the charges.

The special court had reserved its decision on May 29 after extensive arguments concerning the framing of charges against Lalu Prasad, his family members, Prem Gupta, Sarla Gupta, and Railway officials Rakesh Saksena and P.K. Goyal.

The purported scam allegedly occurred between 2004 and 2009 while Lalu Prasad was the Union Railway Minister.

During his time in office, two hotels were leased out without adhering to the proper protocols. One of these hotels was awarded to Sarla Gupta, who is the spouse of Prem Gupta, a close ally of the RJD leader and a Rajya Sabha MP at that time.

The prosecution claims that the RJD leader obtained three acres of valuable land through a benami company. Lalu Prasad has refuted any claims of wrongdoing, asserting that the tenders were allocated transparently and has requested to be discharged from the case.

Meanwhile, in a recent development that poses a challenge for Rabri Devi and other members of the Yadav family, a Delhi court has dismissed petitions aimed at transferring multiple corruption and money-laundering cases away from the court of Special Judge Vishal Gogne.

Principal District and Sessions Judge-cum-Special Judge (PC Act) Dinesh Bhatt of the Rouse Avenue Courts rejected four transfer petitions submitted by Rabri Devi related to the IRCTC hotel scam, the CBI’s land-for-jobs case, and two associated money-laundering prosecutions conducted by the Enforcement Directorate (ED).

With the dismissal of these transfer requests, all criminal cases against Lalu Prasad Yadav, Rabri Devi, Tejashwi Yadav, and other family members will persist under the purview of Special Judge Vishal Gogne.