Key Points:
The ED claims the Lalu family amassed nearly ₹600 crore through the infamous land-for-jobs scam.
Investigations revealed multiple shell companies used to acquire undervalued properties, including a ₹150 crore bungalow.
Lalu clan’s “Not Guilty” plea in the IRCTC case reignites debate over corruption, politics, and accountability.
The “Jungle Raj” in Bihar, which lasted for 15 years from 1990 to 2005, still remains a stain on the political landscape of the state. During this period, former Chief Minister Lalu Prasad Yadav and his family were allegedly involved in several scams.
Lalu’s rule and his series of controversies enabled him and his family to hoard a large amount of wealth, reportedly worth crores. One such alleged scam involved offering jobs in the Indian Railways during his tenure as the Union Minister of Railways from 2004 to 2009 — a move that is still regarded as one of the most infamous land-for-jobs scams. The jobs were allegedly offered in exchange for land worth crores.
With multiple allegations and ongoing trials against the Lalu family, these scams allowed the former Chief Minister of Bihar and his family to amass vast amounts of wealth hidden from the public. In 2023, the Enforcement Directorate (ED) conducted raids at multiple locations linked to Lalu Prasad Yadav, his son, former Deputy Chief Minister of Bihar Tejashwi Yadav, and his daughters.
The raids unearthed several documents indicating that the Lalu family allegedly made nearly ₹600 crore in proceeds of crime through the land for jobs scam.
When Lalu Yadav served as the Railway Minister from 2004 to 2009, he was involved in the alleged land-for-jobs scam, which enabled him to mint a fortune worth crores. He influenced railway officers to provide jobs to specific individuals chosen beforehand — a Group D substitute job in exchange for land sold for more than half the value of its actual worth.
The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) and Enforcement Directorate (ED) have been investigating the alleged land-for-jobs scam, focusing specifically on money laundering and corruption aspects.
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They claimed that the Lalu family had allegedly taken land from people at cheap rates in exchange for providing the family of the previous landowners a job in the Central Railways. The CBI stated in its chargesheet:
“As a quid pro quo, the candidates (for Railway Group D jobs) directly or through their relatives/family members, sold land to Lalu Prasad Yadav at highly discounted rates — up to 1/4th to 1/5th of the prevailing market rates.”
The exchange of land for jobs in the railways allegedly led to the collection of more than 1 lakh sq. ft. of land for merely ₹26 lakh. The CBI also stated that the lands acquired by the Lalu family were actually worth more than ₹4 crore.
The hustle did not end with land exchange. The agency asserted that it discovered multiple discrepancies in the documents of those who were given jobs in the Central Railway. The CBI explained to the Delhi High Court on June 5, 2025, how the Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD) chief Lalu Yadav pressured officials to provide Group D jobs to individuals who were not even capable of writing their own names.
Special Public Prosecutor D.P. Singh highlighted during the hearing that all job applicants came from poor backgrounds and Bihar. Most of them already had fake certificates to justify their educational qualifications, from schools that operated solely to provide bogus certificates.
According to a chart presented by the CBI, land gifts and transfers all happened in the name of Tejashwi Yadav, the current chief ministerial candidate in the upcoming Bihar Assembly elections. The ED has alleged that the proceeds of crime also benefited former Chief Minister Rabri Devi during the Jungle Raj period. The money transfer took place via a shell company.
They also alleged that Rabri Devi assisted in transferring the proceeds of crime to her son, Tejashwi Yadav. This money was used to construct property in Delhi’s New Friends Colony. A company named AK Infosystems Pvt. Ltd. was responsible for buying land from people who desired jobs in the Indian Railways.
This company, which was owned by businessman Amit Katyal, was taken over by Lalu Yadav and his son for ₹1 lakh. However, the properties owned by AK Infosystems were reportedly worth ₹63 crore.
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The investigations in the land-for-jobs scam led to another shocking revelation: Tejashwi's alleged link to another company named AB Exports Pvt. Ltd. (ABEPL). The ED has asserted that in 2007, ABEPL bought a bungalow in New Friends Colony, Delhi, for ₹4 crore. The purchase happened through five shell companies. After three years, Tejashwi bought the shares of ABEPL for only ₹4 lakh. According to the latest reports, the bungalow was valued at ₹150 crore in 2023.
On October 13, 2025, the Rouse Avenue Court in Delhi charged RJD leader and former Railways Minister Lalu Prasad with corruption in the alleged land-for-jobs scam. Rabri Devi was also charged, along with Tejashwi Yadav, under cheating and criminal conspiracy.
As huge as the alleged land-for-jobs scam may seem, this corruption case was not Lalu’s first during his tenure as Railway Minister. Another scam was the Indian Railway Catering and Tourism Corporation (IRCTC) scam.
Major allegations of corruption surfaced against Lalu Yadav during his tenure as Railway Minister between 2004 and 2009. He allegedly influenced the tender process for maintenance contracts of IRCTC hotels in Ranchi and Puri.
The former Chief Minister of Bihar was accused of using a shell company as a cover to acquire three acres of prime land in Patna in exchange for the hotel contract. This contract was then handed over to a private company named Sujata Hotel. The prime land was undervalued and registered under the names of the former Railway Minister’s spouse and son.
The investigation lasted for nearly a decade, from 2006 to 2017, until a case was registered against Lalu Yadav. In the FIR lodged by the CBI, many names, including Rabri Devi and Tejashwi Yadav, were mentioned. On October 13, 2025, all the three accused in the IRCTC scam pleaded NOT GUILTY.
The Lalu family stated that they were willing to face trial and further explained that the scam is merely a political move against them. The investigation carried out by the ED and CBI revealed monumental figures that could certainly have benefited the Lalu family. (Rh)
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