"Elections Coming, People Are Watching": Tejashwi Yadav On Court Setback

Shortly after a Delhi court framed charges in a corruption case against him and his family members, Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD) leader Tejashwi Yadav said such developments are expected ahead of the Bihar election. He added that the "people of Bihar are watching".

"Elections are coming, so things like this will happen... We will reach our destination. The people of Bihar are watching," Tejashwi said, after the Rouse Avenue court framed charges against him, his father and RJD founder Lalu Prasad Yadav, and his mother and former Chief Minister Rabri Devi, among others, in a corruption case. The charges include cheating and criminal conspiracy. All three have pleaded 'not guilty' and said they would face the trial.

The case relates to allegations of corruption in the allotment of maintenance contracts for IRCTC hotels during Lalu Yadav's tenure as Railway Minister from 2004 to 2009. It is alleged that the maintenance contract of two IRCTC hotels, BNR Ranchi and BNR Puri, was awarded to Sujata Hotel. The CBI has alleged that in return for this deal, Lalu Yadav got three acres of prime land through a benami company.

The CBI filed an FIR against Lalu Yadav and his family members in 2017. The CBI had told the Delhi court that there is sufficient material to frame charges against all the accused. Lalu Yadav's counsel had argued that there is no material to frame the charges and that the tenders were awarded fairly.

The court's ruling today has amplified the political attacks of RJD's rivals ahead of the high-voltage assembly polls in Bihar. The BJP's Bihar unit said the court has accepted that Lalu Yadav plotted the IRCTC scam. "Bihar knows he looted public money. The people will give him an answer," the party said in a post on X.

Tejashwi has said he will fight the BJP as long as it is in power. "It is fun to fight storms. We have chosen the path of struggle, and we will reach our destination. "We will fight and win, we are Biharis, we do not fear Baharis (outsiders)," he said.

The 'outsider' attack is aimed at the BJP, as Tejashwi's party tries to position itself as a homegrown political force and paints the BJP as an 'outsider', suggesting that its local leaders follow the instructions of the high command in Delhi.