New Delhi — The Delhi High Court on Monday declined to stay the ongoing trial against Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD) leader and former Union railway minister Lalu Prasad Yadav in the alleged IRCTC scam case and directed the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) to file its response to his plea challenging the framing of charges.
Justice Swarana Kanta Sharma said the court could not pass any interim order on the stay application without hearing the probe agency. Issuing notice to the CBI on Yadav’s petition and stay plea, the court listed the matter for further hearing on January 14 and also called for the trial court records.
During the brief hearing, senior advocates Kapil Sibal and Maninder Singh, appearing for Lalu Yadav, argued that the trial court proceedings should be stayed, pointing out that two witnesses had already been examined within a month. However, the court observed that the plea had been filed belatedly and said it would consider the request only after the CBI submits its reply.
The CBI’s counsel sought time to file a response, which was granted by the court.
On October 13, 2025, a trial court had framed charges against Lalu Prasad Yadav, his wife and former Bihar chief minister Rabri Devi, their son and former deputy chief minister Tejashwi Prasad Yadav, and 11 others in the case. The charges include cheating and criminal conspiracy under the Indian Penal Code, along with offences under the Prevention of Corruption Act.
The case relates to alleged irregularities in the grant of operational contracts of two Indian Railway Catering and Tourism Corporation hotels located in Puri and Ranchi to a private firm. According to the CBI chargesheet, a conspiracy was allegedly hatched between 2004 and 2014, during which the BNR hotels were transferred from Indian Railways to IRCTC and later leased to Sujata Hotels Private Limited of Patna for operations, maintenance and upkeep.
The agency has alleged that the tender process was manipulated and conditions were altered to favour Sujata Hotels. The chargesheet also names former IRCTC group general managers V K Asthana and R K Goyal, along with Vijay Kochhar and Vinay Kochhar, directors of Sujata Hotels and owners of Chanakya Hotel. Delight Marketing Company, now known as Lara Projects, and Sujata Hotels Private Limited have also been named as accused firms.
In its order, the trial court had made sharp observations, stating that the land and share transactions in the case were “possibly an instance of crony capitalism fostered in the garb of eliciting private participation” in the railway hotels at Ranchi and Puri.
Besides Lalu Prasad Yadav, charges under the Prevention of Corruption Act have been framed against Pradeep Kumar Goel, Rakesh Saksena, Bhupendra Kumar Agarwal, Rakesh Kumar Gogia and Vinod Kumar Asthana. The court had also ordered the framing of charges for cheating under IPC Section 420 against Lalu Prasad, Rabri Devi, Tejashwi Yadav and several other accused, along with a common charge of criminal conspiracy under IPC Section 120B.
The maximum punishment under the Prevention of Corruption Act is ten years, while the offence of cheating carries a maximum sentence of seven years.
