Apparently, it appears to be the shrewd move of Modi-Shah duo. While it aims at the breaking the morale of the opposition leaders and Modi-Shah detractors in Bihar, it also aims at restraining the BJP dissidents, who in recent months have been feeling quite restless, from raising their voice.

After preferring to stay in amnesia for long, the CBI has suddenly realised the urgency of sending back Lalu Yadav to jail well before the 2024 Lok Sabha elections. Though the CBI had challenged the bail granted by the Jharkhand high court on April 22, 2022, it refrained from pursuing it and did not press for urgent hearing. On Friday it came alive of its moral responsibility and approached the apex court, which posted it for hearing on August 25, by a three-judge bench headed by Chief Justice of India DY Chandrachud. The urgency shown by CBI sends a loud and clear message that it had pushed the matter at the behest of its political masters.

The duo is ignoring the adverse political impact this action would have not only in Bihar, but also in Uttar Pradesh. Lalu has family relation with Mulayam Sing Yadav. His daughter is married into the family of Netaji. This action would not only enrage the Yadavs of Uttar Pradesh they will revenge it at the elections. After the death of Mulayam Singh Yadav, he is the only living link of the socialist lineage of Ram Manohar Lohia.

Lalu Yadav was convicted in five fodder scam related to Deoghar, Dumka, Chaibasa and Doranda treasuries during his tenure as chief minister in Bihar. CBI has sought the cancellation of bail granted to Lalu in the Doranda treasury case related to the fodder scam. Lalu Yadav was sentenced to five years in prison and slapped with a fine of Rs 60 lakh by a special CBI court in Ranchi in connection with the fifth fodder scam. He was earlier sentenced to 14 years in jail in four other cases related to Dumka, Deoghar and Chaibasa treasuries in Jharkhand.

Lalu’s farsightedness could be understood from the simple fact that he dared to arrest Hindu nationalist L.K. Advani and stop his Rath Yatra. He took the step at the time when most of the leaders, either belonging to Congress or from opposition rank, were scared of laying their hands on him. Through his action of arresting Advani, he not only in one stroke finished the upper caste political hegemony but provided a major boost to the backward caste rising. This step of Lalu helped him to form the famous coalition of Yadavs and Muslims.

Lalu not only symbolises the caste politics, he finished the legacy of the upper caste political hegemony. Of course the emergence of the backward caste politics was the primary reason for disintegration of the social base and turning irrelevant the politics practiced by the Congress, Lalu provided a new platform and vision to these people, who till then owed their loyalty to Congress. The backward caste politics provided a new forum for these people and they abandoned Congress.

The caste politics of RSS and Mohan Bhagwat, which is being implemented and practiced by Modi, does not have a socio-economic relevance and impact. Its effect is temporary. It is simply election oriented. Bhagwat must do some introspection and also carry out some studies. The section of the society which is denied of political space and platform accept Hindutva as an instrument for access. These people are vulnerable to shifting their loyalty at the very next available opportunity.

Modi-Shah cracked their whip against Lalu only after he became political active after his kidney transplant. The duo are apprehensive of the possible fall out. In fact Lalu showing keen interest in formation of INDIA and providing it an institutional shape and character has also unnerved them. His being constant touch with Sonia Gandhi and Rahul has panicked them.

The Modi government during the last four years after the 2019 Lok Sabha elections has used its agencies the CBI and the ED against Tejashvi. But it failed to tame him. . The CBI has also questioned RJD leader Rabri Devi, Lalu’s wife. ED even raided the house of Tejashwi Yadav in Delhi and other family members and associates in 24 locations. This is the modus operandi – the CBI files an investigation report and leaning on this, the ED gets into the act by invoking the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA). The PMLA provisions are draconian and give the ED sweeping powers to arrest, search and seize property and keep people in jail with their getting bail extremely difficult.

The Modi government has weaponised the central agencies, particularly the ED. It is purely a mechanism to break Lalu and force him to surrender. There is little doubt CBI’s latest move, or the earlier attempt of ED to implicate him in job for land scam, are directly connected to the political development in the state where the joining of Nitish Kumar and JD(U) in the mahagatbandhan has isolated the BJP. The BJP hopes to use the central agencies on the issue of corruption to try and destabilise the alliance.

The CBI has already filed a chargesheet in an alleged land-for-jobs scam case against Lalu Yadav, his wife Rabri Devi, son Tejashwi Yadav and others. Lalu Prasad Yadav is accused of giving employment in the railways in return for land parcels gifted or sold at cheap rates to his family and its associates. He served as Minister of Railways from May 2004 to May 2009.Tejashvi correctly said; “Modi is afraid of Bihar. Their greatest fear is from Bihar and hence these things are happening. It will continue till the elections...We are not scared. We are clear about the way forward. We will fight and win”.

While approaching for cancellation of bail, the CBI has blamed of committing error. It told the apex court that the high court committed an error in concluding that Lalu had undergone half the sentence. According to him, Lalu’s sentence was to run consecutively, one after the other, which resulted in his sentence being 14 years. At the time of granting bail, Lalu had only undergone about one-year imprisonment, the CBI plea stated. All the five cases are different in nature and if the legal sources are to be believed, there is order that these should run concurrently. These sources maintain that the CBI is twisting the fact. If at all it was true, then in that case it was sitting tight over the case. They became pro active after Lalu became active politically. (IPA Service)