IRCTC scam: CBI’s request to cancel bail rejected, court issues warning to Tejashwi Yadav

A Delhi court on Tuesday reprimanded Bihar Deputy Chief Minsiter Tejashwi Yadav for his comments on the CBI and its agents, who are looking into an alleged scheme in which he is an accused, although not cancelling his bail. After the CBI said Yadav had threatened its agents, the judge advised him to use appropriate language if he planned to speak in public.

The CBI also informed the court that one of its investigators had been the target of a life-threatening attempt in Uttar Pradesh. It further said, "We have no evidence to link this case to that threat. But after that threat, there is an atmosphere of fear and anxiety."

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"Don't CBI officials have mothers, sisters, and children... Will they always be CBI officers? Will they not retire?" the RJD leader had remarked during a news conference in Patna. He added, "You should faithfully execute the job of a constitutional organisation."

This and other passages from the statement were read out by the CBI in a Delhi district court as evidence of a threat, which was used as justification for imprisoning him while the investigation is ongoing. The CBI's arguments, according to Yadav, were "simply a narrative-building exercise" by the governing BJP against opponents.

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Later, the court posed the rhetorical question, "Should such statements be made while being the Deputy Chief Minister," and warned him against making "any such statement from now on". 

The judge pulled up the young leader but rejected the CBI's request to have his bail revoked, saying, "There's no basis for it."

The central agency was seeking cancellation of bail to Tejashwi Yadav in an alleged scam in contract of two hotels of the Indian Railway Catering and Tourism Corporation (IRCTC) to a private firm. The case pertains when his father Lalu Prasad Yadav was Railway Minister in the Congress-led UPA government around 10 years ago.

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