'Don't put cart before horse': Court rejects Lalu's plea seeking unrelied documents for trial

Delhi court rejects Lalu Prasad Yadav's plea for unrelied documents, emphasizing fair trial without procedural delays.

A Delhi court has rejected the pleas of former Railway Minister Lalu Prasad Yadav and his wife Rabri Devi seeking over 1,600 unrelied documents to prepare their defence in the land-for-jobs case trial, saying they were designed to "condemn the trial to a maze at the very outset."

Special Judge Vishal Gogne underlined that providing these documents en bloc would not only "place the cart before the horse" but also throw the judicial process into "complete disarray".

He also dismissed the applications of two other accused — personal secretary (PS) of Lalu Prasad, R.K. Mahajan, seeking one unrelied document, and a former appointing authority, ex-general manager of railways, Maheep Kapoor, seeking 23 unrelied documents.

Unrelied documents are materials seized by investigating agencies but not relied on in the prosecution complaint.

The land-for-jobs case relates to Group D appointments made in the West Central Zone of the Indian Railways in Jabalpur, Madhya Pradesh, during Lalu Prasad's tenure as the railway minister between 2004 and 2009, in return for land parcels gifted or transferred by the recruits in the names of the RJD supremo's family or associates, according to the CBI.

The case was registered on May 18, 2022, against Lalu Prasad and others, including his wife, two daughters, unidentified public officials and private persons.