Lalu took plots for ministerial berths: Sushil Kumar Modi

The 'exposé' duel between senior BJP leader Sushil Kumar Modi and Bihar's ruling RJD's first family has gone a notch above benami properties with Modi accusing RJD president Lalu Prasad of "receiving" land from two former Union ministers in lieu of their ministerial berths in the Congress-led UPA regime.

According to Modi's latest, in the string of allegations made against the Yadav clan's 'benami deals' since April 4, "ex-Union minister Kanti Singh leased 95 decimal prime land with three rooms and a bathroom in Patna to former CM Rabri Devi for 99 years, at a monthly rental of mere Rs 1,250 in 2006, in lieu of becoming a minister in UPA-I," said Modi, while flashing the lease papers at a presser at BJP headquarters in Patna on Thursday.

He continued, "Another ex-Union minister, who has transferred land to Lalu family is Raghunath Jha, who "gifted" six kattah land with a three-storeyed palatial building to Lalu's sons Tejashwi Yadav and Tej Pratap Yadav in Gopalganj district in 2005 and few months later, he was made a junior minister in UPA-I."

Modi claims there are around 40 politicians who have "gifted" land to Lalu family in exchange of tickets for contesting assembly or parliamentary elections.