Government schools will be opened in seized properties of Lalu Prasad, says Samrat Choudhary

Bihar’s Deputy Chief Minister Samrat Choudhary has declared that government schools would be opened in seized properties of Opposition RJD chief Lalu Prasad Yadav. Mr. Choudhary also called Mr. Yadav a “registered criminal”.

“The government will open schools in seized properties of Lalu Yadav ji. The investigating agencies have already seized Mr. Yadav’s properties in ₹950 crore fodder scam and the government will now open schools in those seized properties”, declared Mr. Choudhary in a programme of a private news channel held in Patna on December 12.

Mr. Choudhary was replying question in the programme titled “Bihar Samvad” on one of his earlier statements that the government has prepared list of 400 criminals whose properties will be seized. “Lalu Prasad Yadav is a registered criminal and the criminals have to leave Bihar…their ill-gotten properties will be seized…I’ve saying this even before the elections (recently held state assembly poll) that every person who is big or small and who have accumulated ill-gotten money, have to go to jail and return the money to the people of the state”, Mr. Choudhary asserted.

While mentioning of a property of RJD chief opposite the central school near Patna zoo, Mr Choudhary said, “that house is locked for last 20 years and after making some renovation, the government will open a school there…the people of the State will like it and even the Lalu Prasad Yadav ji will like this”. “This is happening in accordance with court’s verdict to seize properties of Mr Yadav and the government is only acting upon this by opening a school there”, he added.

Mr. Prasad is a convict in several cases related with ₹950-crore fodder scam and the investigating agencies have allegedly seized some of his properties. Mr. Yadav has even served jail several times in the infamous fodder scam cases.

Earlier in March 2025, deputy Chief Minister Samrat Choudhary in the previous NDA government had said that the State government would approach the court to get back its ₹950 crore misappropriated through the fodder scam in which RJD chief and former chief minister Lalu Prasad was convicted.

“Legal action will be taken by confiscating the properties of people involved in the fodder scam. This is the decision of the court and action will be taken on that basis, whether it is Lalu Prasad or anyone else. Whoever was involved in the fodder scam, their properties will be confiscated and the money will be deposited in the government’s treasury” Mr Choudhary who was Bihar’s finance minister at that time said.

Replying another question over use of “bulldozer” in Bihar like neighboring state of Uttar Pradesh, Mr Choudhary on Friday (December 12, 2025) said, “this is Nitish Kumar model of governance and under his leadership the government is doing all this as per directives of court”. Earlier, after formation of the new NDA government bulldozer was being suddenly used to evict illegal encroachments in several parts of the state and Mr Choudhary had earned the acronym as “bulldozer man of Bihar”, Mr. Choudhary had clarified in state assembly that his name was not “bulldozer”.

Mr Choudhary had, earlier, always been wearing a saffron turban over his head declaring that he would remove it only after removal of Chief Minister Nitish Kumar from his post but, when making another political flip-flop Mr Kumar shook hands with the BJP in January 2024, Mr Choudhary went to Haridwar in Uttrakhand and removed his turban saying he has offered it to the “holy river Ganga”.

In the recently held Assembly elections for which results were announced on November 14, the NDA had won 202 seats out of total 243-state assembly and formed the government.

Of late, RJD leader Rabri Devi who is former Chief Minister of the State and Leader of Opposition in state Legislative Council was asked to vacate her government bungalow 10 Circular Road where she has been living with her ailing husband Lalu Prasad and others for the last 20 years.

The government, though, allotted another official residence 39, Hardinge Road to Ms Devi and but, the family is yet to shift the residence with the RJD leaders asserting that they would not “vacate the current residence at any cost”. Recently, pictures of a private under constriction house allegedly owned by Mr Prasad in Mahuabagh locality of Phulwarisharief area of Patna had gone viral on social media which said that Mr Prasad might shift to their own house soon after vacating the current government residence.