Lalu in Party Office
Lalu in Party Office
By Our Correspondent
Caught between two powerful relatives – Bihar Chief Minister Rabri Devi and Railway Minister Lalu Prasad Yadav (both former) – Lalu’s landless relatives who were given government land are now caught on the wrong foot.
Before being thrown out of power in 2005 by Nitish Kumar, the Rabri Devi government had allotted government land to Lalu’s elder brother, Gulab Yadav’s wife.
Another piece of land was given to the son of his nephew, Ramanand Yadav on the ground that they were landless and belonged to the other backward caste (OBC) category. While 80 decimel of land was allotted in the name of Kunti Devi, 40 decimel was given to Sudesh Yadav in Lalu’s village, Phulwaria in Gopalganj district in 2004.
The illegal transfer of land would have remained under carpet but for the largesse doled out by Lalu Prasad Yadav during his tenure as rail minister to his state of Bihar. The Indian Railways acquired a huge chunk of land for the Hathuwa-Bhatni project which included the construction of the Phulwaria railway station. However, in the process Kunti Devi and Sudesh Yadav’s land were also acquired.
The matter still would not have come to light but for the delay in payment of compensation to Kunti Devi. This was coupled with the fact that
Sudesh Yadav was paid a huge compensation. This angered Lalu’s elder brother and he forced the contractor to stop the work. The contractor informed the Gopalganj district.
After a thorough probe the district magistrate cancelled the allotment of plots to Lalu’s kin and asked the officials of land revenue department to take possession of the land in question.
And now the land acquisition department through its letter (317/4/06/09) has issued notices to the beneficiaries to even return the compensation amount.
As it is former rail minister Lalu Prasad Yadav has been snubbed by his successor, Mamata Banerjee, who cancelled the order issued by her predecessor on May 19 which uppedc the benefits for former rail ministers under the “golden pass scheme”. Instead of life-long free rail travel to ex-rail ministers in first AC with a companion, Lalu Prasad Yadav’s order provided for free travel in first AC along with three companions and an attendant in second AC sleeper.
Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar who was also the railway minister expressed surprise over reports of Lalu getting the railways to issue four passes to former rail ministers. “It is amazing how a person holding such a high post can take a decision for his own benefit. The decision is not related to any policy matter and even if it was so, it should have been left to the new incumbent,” Kumar pointed out.