The CBI told the Delhi High Court that Lalu Prasad Yadav, Rabri Devi, and Tejashwi Yadav cannot escape trial in the IRCTC scam due to absence of sanction, as ASG D.P. Singh stated Section 19 approval is not mandatory for prosecution.
NEW DELHI: The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) informed the Delhi High Court that Lalu Prasad Yadav, his wife Rabri Devi, and son Tejashwi Yadav cannot avoid facing trial in the IRCTC scam simply due to the lack of prosecution sanction when the trial court first acknowledged the case.
During the proceedings before Justice Swarana Kanta Sharma, who was considering the Yadav family’s petitions against the charges, Additional Solicitor General D. P. Singh asserted that obtaining sanction under Section 19 of the Prevention of Corruption Act is not a prerequisite for prosecuting the accused.
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Singh noted that this viewpoint was also expressed in March 2020 by then Attorney General of India K. K. Venugopal. He added that as the case was being “dragged,” a sanction was subsequently acquired, which is allowed by law, and that it did not cause any prejudice to the defendants.
The senior legal officer stated,
“Sanction is not required. But it was taken. Sanction was taken at a stage where proceedings under section 207 (of CrPC) were going on. And therefore, there was no prejudice that was caused,”
He further explained,
“The sanction can come later. There is no difficulty; the entire proceedings remain… You don’t have to go back to the stage of taking cognisance unless some prejudice is caused. None of my friends have argued or shown what the prejudice that was caused.”
On October 13, 2025, a trial court brought charges against Lalu Prasad Yadav, Rabri Devi, Tejashwi Yadav, and 11 others for alleged offences including cheating, criminal conspiracy, and corruption under the Indian Penal Code and sections of the Prevention of Corruption Act.
Lalu, Rabri Devi, and Tejashwi contended that the trial court acknowledged the case without a sanction under either Section 19 of the Prevention of Corruption Act or Section 197 of the CrPC.
The Additional Solicitor General pointed out that the issue of cognisance under Section 197 of the CrPC is a trial matter.
The trial court also framed charges against Pradeep Kumar Goel, Rakesh Saxena, Bhupendra Kumar Agarwal, Rakesh Kumar Gogia, and Vinod Kumar Asthana under Section 13(2) along with Section 13(1)(d)(ii) and (iii) of the Prevention of Corruption Act.
Section 13(2) pertains to punishment for criminal misconduct by a public servant, while Sections 13(1)(d)(ii) and (iii) relate to abuses of position by a public servant for personal gain.
Furthermore, the court ordered that charges be framed under IPC Section 420 (cheating) against Lalu Prasad, Rabri Devi, Tejashwi, M/s LARA Projects LLP, Vijay Kochhar, Vinay Kochhar, Sarla Gupta, and Prem Chand Gupta.
The maximum penalty under the anti-corruption law is 10 years, and for cheating, it is seven years.
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The IRCTC scam involves alleged irregularities in awarding contracts for Ranchi and Puri railway hotels when Lalu Prasad Yadav was Union Railways Minister (2004–2009).
On 13 October 2025, Delhi’s Rouse Avenue Court formally framed charges against Lalu Prasad Yadav, Rabri Devi, Tejashwi Yadav, and 11 others for cheating, criminal conspiracy, and violations of the Prevention of Corruption Act.
Earlier, Special Judge (PC Act) Vishal Gogne of the Rouse Avenue Court had framed charges against Yadav for corruption, cheating, and criminal conspiracy. His wife Rabri Devi and son Tejashwi Yadav were also charged with conspiracy and cheating.
According to the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI), Lalu Prasad Yadav and his family allegedly received valuable land parcels and company shares as illegal gratification in exchange for awarding contracts to a private hotel company during his tenure as Union Railway Minister between 2004 and 2009.
The agency alleges that IRCTC hotels in Ranchi and Puri were leased to Sujata Hotels through an irregular and manipulated tender process, while land valued in crores was transferred to a company linked to Rabri Devi and Tejashwi Yadav at significantly undervalued rates.