Tejashwi slams rumours linking him to Gurugram mall that CBI raids, but drags BJP leader

Bihar deputy CM Tejashwi Yadav said that he was “surprised” seeing some media reports suggesting the raided mall in Gurugram, Haryana, belonged to him. He added that the construction of the place was started in the presence of a BJP leader.

Bihar deputy chief minister and Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD) leader Tejashwi Yadav on Wednesday refuted reports of an under-construction mall in Haryana's Gurugram, raided by the CBI earlier in the day, belonging to him.

Bihar deputy chief minister Tejashwi Yadav addresses a press conference after the newly-formed 'Mahagathbandhan' government won the trust vote in Patna on Wednesday. (PTI Photo)

Speaking with reporters after the Mahagathbandhan or Grand Alliance government led by Bihar chief minister's JD(U) and RJD won a trust motion at the state assembly, Tejashwi said he has information about the mall being inaugurated by a BJP MP.

“[I] don't know why my name is being dragged into this, a narrative is being created by some,” the deputy CM added.

He had raked up the issue at the special session of the Assembly earlier in the day, stating that the BJP-led Centre is using federal agencies such as the CBI, ED and IT to harass political rivals. The RJD leader took a dig at the BJP by calling the agencies the party's three ‘jamais’ (sons-in-law).

He said he was “surprised” seeing some media reports suggesting the raided mall belonged to him.

“I got the papers of the company and found that the company is based in Harayana . What is more interesting is that the mall's construction was started in the presence of a BJP leader,” Tejashwi told the Assembly.

The raids were carried out by the CBI at 25 locations in different places of Delhi, Gurugram, and Bihar's Patna, Madhubani and Katihar. An under-construction mall in Gurugram was among the places being raided.

The searches were conducted in connection with a case lodged on May 18 against RJD chief Lalu Prasad Yadav, his family members, and 12 others for allegedly providing jobs in return of land in 2008-09 when he was the railway minister. Prasad's wife and former Bihar chief minister Rabri Devi, a co-accused in the case, said that people were watching and understood what was behind the raids.

(With agency inputs)