CBI grills Lalu aide, his wife in IRCTC hotel scam

The Central Bureau of Investigation, which is probing the alleged irregularities in the tender of two IRCTC hotels to private companies by then Railway Minister Lalu Prasad Yadav, has grilled Sarla Gupta and her husband Prem Chand Gupta who is a Rajya Sabha MP, and Vijay Kochhar and Vinay Kochhar, both directors of Sujata Hotels and owner of Panchari Hotel.

After the agency was done questioning Sarla, they decided to summon Lalu and his son Tejashwi for questioning in connection with an alleged land-for-hotels scam. The RJD leader has been asked to appear for questioning at the agency headquarters on September 11 and Tejashwi the next day.

The agency had in July booked Lalu and his family members and carried out raids at multiple places. The CBI has alleged that Lalu as Railway Minister in 2006 handed over the maintenance of two IRCTC hotels to a private firm after receiving a bribe in the form of three acres of prime land in Bihar's capital through a benami company.

In a copy of the FIR, it is alleged that Lalu entered into a criminal conspiracy with owners of Sujata hotels, Sarla Gupta, wife of his close associate Prem Chand Gupta (an RJD MP in Rajya Sabha) and IRCTC officials for "undue pecuniary advantage to himself and others".

It is alleged that Vinay Kochhar on February 25, 2005, sold commercial property in the form of three acres of land in Patna through 10 sale-deeds for Rs 1.47 crore to Delight Marketing, in which Sarla Gupta was a director as a front benami holder on behalf of Lalu.