The ED asserted it has seized documents revealing "proceeds of crime" worth £60 mn a day after searches were carried out at 24 locations in Delhi-NCR, Patna, Mumbai, and Ranchi on premises connected to former Bihar chief minister Lalu Prasad Yadav, his son, Bihar deputy chief minister Tejashwi Yadav, and his daughters in the context of the land-for-railway job probe.
The searches were carried out as part of a money laundering investigation in the matter, which goes back to Lalu's time as the UPA government's minister for railways and involves allegations of land extortion from individuals in exchange for Group D posts in various railway zones. “It has been revealed during the investigation that in many railway zones, more than 50% of the recruited candidates were from the constituencies of Lalu Prasad’s family,” said ED.
The property, according to the ED, is listed under the name of AB Exports Pvt Ltd, a business that Tejashwi owns and controls. Tejashwi was discovered to be residing in and using this home as his primary residence during the searches, according to the ED.
“The investigation conducted so far has revealed that several pieces of land at prominent locations in Patna and other areas were illegally acquired by the family of Lalu Prasad Yadav, in lieu of jobs provided in railways. The current market value of these land parcels is more than £20 million,” the ED stated in a press note.
“It is suspected that a huge amount of cash/proceeds of crime has been infused in purchasing this property and a few Mumbai-based entities dealing in the gems and jewellery sector were used to channel ill-gotten proceeds of crime in this regard,” the ED further said.