Land-for-jobs 'scam': Former Rail Minister Lalu Prasad moves Delhi HC to quash CBI FIR
The Hindu
Senior advocate Kapil Sibal argues in court that CBI failed to obtain mandatory sanction for investigation against Lalu Prasad.
Former rail minister Lalu Prasad on Thursday (May 29, 2025) sought in the Delhi High Court the quashing of the FIR filed by the CBI in the land-for-jobs "scam".
Senior advocate Kapil Sibal appeared in the court on behalf of the Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD) supremo and argued that the enquiry and the FIR as well as the investigation and the subsequent chargesheets in the matter could not be legally sustained as the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) had failed to obtain prior sanction under section 17A of the Prevention of Corruption Act.
The sanction under section 17A is a mandatory requirement of law to launch any enquiry or investigation against a public servant, he said.
Submitting that the trial court is slated to hear arguments on charge on June 2, Mr. Sibal urged the court to pass directions to defer the same.
He said even after an initial closure report, the FIR was registered by the CBI in 2022 for offences allegedly committed from 2004 to 2009 and the trial court took cognisance and "merged" three chargesheets on February 25.
"What will I do if the charge is framed? Please wait for a month. We will argue the matter. For 14 years, you have waited [to register the FIR]. This is only mala fide," Mr. Sibal submitted.
Justice Ravinder Dudeja heard Mr. Sibal as well as senior advocate D P Singh, who appeared in the court for the CBI, and said he would pass an order.
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