Railways Minister Mamata Banerjee (54) has ordered a CBI inquiry against her predecessor Lalu Prasad.
She has sought a probe into allegations made by a group of Janata Dal (U) MPs last year that people were persuaded to cede land to the Railways in exchange of jobs and contracts during Prasad’s tenure.
The MPs had handed over papers to Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, which they claimed included affidavits of people and copies of sale deeds which indicted Lalu.
“Banerjee wants the truth to come out,” said an official.
Banerjee and Prasad are not on the best of terms. Soon after taking over, Banerjee had cast doubts about the financial turnaround her predecessor was said to have brought about in the Railways.
A railway official said Baner-jee’s latest move could be linked to her recent meeting with Bihar chief minister Nitish Kumar who is Prasad’s political rival.
Banerjee refused to discuss the matters. “MPs had made allegations about irregularities and these are being investigated,” she told Hindustan Times.