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Cops probe if Tejashwi had nod to meet Lalu Yadav at RIMS
He said that as per his information, only two persons, which did not include Tejashwi, were given permission to meet Lalu Prasad Yadav.
The department of home, jail and disaster management has sought a reply from the Hotwar jail superintendent whether a meeting between Tejashwi Yadav and his father RJD leader Lalu Prasad last Saturday at the Rajendra Institute of Medical Sciences (RIMS) here was with or without the requisite permission.
“I was informed that the meeting between incarcerated Prasad and his son Tejashwi on February 16 was without following the rules of jail manual. Jail superintendent Ashik Kumar Choudhary has been asked to submit a clarification by Wednesday. We will take necessary action only after receiving the report,” IG (prisons) Virendra Bhushan said.
He said that as per his information, only two persons, which did not include Tejashwi, were given permission to meet Prasad.
Jail superintendent Choudhary could not be reached for comment despite repeated attempts.
In an earlier interaction with media, he had said that family members of Prasad could meet him only on Saturdays,as fixed by jail administration. But, in special circumstances, the family members could seek permission to meet Prasad from his office. The time fixed for meeting Prasad was fixed between 9 am and 2 pm, the superintendent had said.
But, RIMS records reportedly showed that Tejashwi met Prasad between 4pm and 7pm.
Meanwhile, Ranchi SSP Anish Gupta ordered a probe into the matter by deputy superintendent of police (Sadar) Deepak Kumar Pandey.
On Saturday, Prasad’s daughter Hema Yadav and her husband Vineet Yadav met him at RIMS. They did not talk to media.
Prasad, who has been convicted in three separate fodder scam cases since December 23, 2017, surrendered before a court in the state capital on September 6, 2018, after his provisional bail in a fodder scam case ended. Later, Birsa Munda Central Jail authorities shifted him to RIMS.
Earlier, on August 25, Jharkhand high court had rejected Prasad’s plea for extending the bail to another three months. The court had directed him to surrender saying his health condition had improved to the stage which could be managed at RIMS.
