The JD(U) on Saturday served a show-cause notice to party MP Anil Sahni, charge sheeted by the CBI for alleged cheating and corruption in leave Travel Concession (lTC) scam.
He was asked to explain his conduct within a week before former party president Sharad Yadav, who is leader of the party in Rajya Sabha.
This comes soon after Rajya Sabha Chairman Hamid Ansari gave his approval to the CBI to prosecute Sahni whose term in the Upper House ends in April 2018.
JD(U) intends to carry out an internal enquiry into the charges before taking action against Sahni. The chargesheeted MP is also expected to meet Chief Minister Nitish Kumar. Belonging to the Other Backward Class, Sahni is the son of former MP Madan Sahni
“A chargesheet has been filed against you into the lTC case. It has become a serious concern after Chairman of Rajya Sabha has granted permission for judicial proceedings into the matter. It is very clear to you that such involvement in financial irregularities are against pronounced policies of the party.
“Hope you will explain your position before leader of JD(U) in Rajya Sabha Sharad Yadav within a week. In case you fail to do so, the party can take disciplinary action against you,” JD(U) general secretary KC Tyagi said in the notice sent to Sahani. CBI had filed a chargesheet against Sahni alleging that he, in conspiracy with other persons, used forged e-tickets and fake boarding passes to defraud Rajya Sabha to the tune of `23.71 lakh as travel and dearness allowance reimbursement without undertaking the actual journey. Besides Sahni, others named in the CBI charge sheet were Anup Singh Panwar, an employee of Delhi-based Air Cruise Travels Private limited, N S Nair, then Office Superintendent (Traffic), Air India and one Arvind Tiwari.
Sahni’s refrain has been that the case was a conspiracy against him. “It’s a conspiracy against me... Why shall I resign on moral ground when I have not done anything wrong,” the second term Rajya Sabha member from Nitish Kumar’s party said in Patna Friday.