Jharkhand Rajya Sabha poll: CBI searches lawmakers' homes

New Delhi, April 21 (IANS) The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) Saturday searched homes of some legislators and an industrialist in Jharkhand following horse-trading charges that marred the now-countermanded March 30 Rajya Sabha poll.

CBI teams searched Jharkhand houses of legislators K.N. Tripathi of the Congress, Suresh Paswan of the Rashtriya Janata Dal and Vishnu Bhaiyya of the Bharatiya Janata Party, an official said here.

The house of industrialist R.K. Agarwal, who was one of the independent candidates in the Rajya Sabha poll, was also raided.

The CBI has registered an FIR after the Jharkhand High Court, hearing a petition related to the case, asked the Election Commission to get the horse-trading charges probed by the central agency.

The Election Commission will hold a fresh poll May 3 for the two Rajya Sabha seats from the state after countermanding the March 30 election marred by corruption charges and allegations that some candidates had indulged in unfair means and horse-trading to reach the upper house.

The poll was countermanded after Rs.2.15 crore in cash was seized from a car belonging to a candidate's brother.

CBI officials said their sleuths also conducted searches at the residences of Agarwal's son-in-law Soumitra Saha in Jamshedpur and his relative R.K. Saha in Chaibasa.

Agarwal is the president of the Singhbhum Chamber of Commerce.