I-T dept to attach benami assets of Lalu Yadav, kin

New Delhi: The income tax (I-T) department has issued the final attachment order for about a dozen plots and buildings in Delhi and Bihar that belong to RJD chief Lalu Prasad Yadav and his family members.

In June, the I-T department had issued a provisional order for attachment of these properties under the Benami Transactions (Prohibition) Act, 2016, which has now been confirmed after adjudication.

The properties include a farmhouse and land in Delhi’s Palam Vihar area, a building in the upmarket New Friends Colony area of south Delhi whose land value is allegedly Rs 50 crore, nine plots on a 256.75 decimal land area in Patna’s Phulwari Sharif area where a shopping mall was being constructed, apart from others in the same area in Bihar’s capital. Most of these are benami properties.     

Benami Act allows for the prosecution of the beneficial owner, the benamidar, the abettor and the inducer to benami transactions.

The IT department alleged that these alleged benami assets bear a “deed” value of about Rs 9.32 crore, but they estimate their current market value at Rs 170-180 crore.

IT officials said that other assets of the Yadav clan, which have been provisionally attached, will also be processed for final attachment soon.

Earlier, IT department had served notices for attachment to Mr Yadav, his wife Rabri Devi, son Tejashwi Yadav, former state deputy CM, daughters Chanda, Ragini Yadav and Misa Bharti, an MP, and son-in-law Shailesh Kumar.
 
Mr Yadav has said that the cases by IT department are a result of “political vendetta” against him and his family.

Last week, the Enforcement Directorate (ED) too had attached a farmhouse owned by Misa Bharti, daughter of Lalu Prasad Yadav, in connection with its investigation into the Rs 8000 crore money laundering case.

The farmhouse, located at Palam farms in south Delhi’s Bijwasan area, was attached provisionally under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA). It belongs to Ms Bharti and her husband Shailesh Kumar and is “held in the name of Ms Mishail Packers and Printers Private Limited”.

“It was purchased using Rs 1.2 crore involved in money laundering in the year 2008-09,” the ED alleged.