Jharkhand: Ranchi Court Reserves Order on ED Custody, Sends Hement Soren Hotwar Jail

Hemant Soren, who resigned as the Chief Minister of Jharkhand and was subsequently arrested by the Enforcement Directorate (ED), produces in the Ranchi court on Thursday afternoon under heightened security. After a vigorous debate between ED and defense lawyers, the Ranchi Court reserved its order and placed Hemant Soren in judicial custody for a day, and the decision on ED custody will be pronounced on Friday. The ED had initially sought a 10-day custody for Hemant Soren from the Ranchi court.

On the other hand, in Delhi, Senior advocate Kapil Sibbal, representing Hemant Soren, brought the matter to the attention of Chief Justice DY Chandrachud in the Supreme Court on Thursday morning. Solicitor General Tushar Mehta, representing the Government of India, informed the Supreme Court that Hemant Soren had also filed a petition in the Jharkhand High Court, scheduled for a hearing the same day. In response, Kapil Sibbal stated the withdrawal of the High Court petition. After considering arguments from both sides, Chief Justice DY Chandrachud indicated that the court would address the matter on Friday.

Before this, Upon reaching Ranchi Raj Bhavan on Wednesday night, Hemant Soren submitted his resignation to Governor CP Radhakrishnan then after ED informed the media and his family member that Hemant Soren is under arrest.
During the day on wednesday, the ED extensively questioned Soren. Meanwhile, the Jharkhand Mukti Morcha (JMM) and Congress alliance elected Transport Minister Champai Soren as the leader of the legislative party in the Soren government. Champai, closely associated with Hemant Soren and his father Shibu Soren, had supported Shibu Soren in the statehood movement.

Hemant Soren faces two separate cases, one related to illegal mining leases and the other to an illegal land scam.  Additionally, a case of misuse of official position is under investigation by the Election Commission, with the report submitted to the Governor.

The land scam investigation, initiated by a circle officer, revealed fake deals involving hundreds of acres of land through fraudulent documents, implicating officials and prominent businessmen. The probe ultimately connected these activities to the Chief Minister.

The investigation into the army land deal, involving the buying and selling of army land based on fake names and addresses, led to an FIR lodged by the Ranchi Municipal Corporation. The ED initiated an investigation and issued summons to Soren, eventually arresting 14 individuals, including an Indian Administrative Service (IAS) officer and two businessmen.

Apart from the land scam, the ED is investigating money laundering in illegal mining. Raids were conducted on the premises of Soren’s media advisor, Sahibganj district officials, and a former MLA. The agency seized significant amounts of money during the raids and issued summons to the MLA representative, subsequently arresting him under PMLA.

Hemant Soren had been repeatedly summoned by the ED, with no response to fix a time and place for questioning. He was interrogated for the first time on January 13, and the 10th summons, issued on January 27, required his appearance between January 29 and January 31.