Money Laundering Case: Hemant Soren Moves Jharkhand HC Challenging Probe Agency’s Summons

Chief Minister Hemant Soren on Saturday filed a petition in the Jharkhand High Court challenging issuance of summons to him by the ED in a case of alleged money laundering.

Previously on September 18, the Supreme Court refused to entertain Soren’s plea against the ED’s summons in a case of alleged money laundering.

A bench comprising of Justice Aniruddha Bose and Justice Bela M Trivedi granted Soren the liberty to approach the Jharkhand High Court for relief in the matter.

Soren’s counsel Piyush Chitresh stated, Soren filed the petition in the high court challenging the issuance of summons to him by the ED.

The ED sent a summons to Soren to depose at the federal agency’s office in Ranchi on August 14 and later to record his statement under the PMLA.

Also, Soren skipped ED’s summons in an alleged defence land scam case citing pre-scheduled events.

The 48-year-old Jharkhand Mukti Morcha leader was interrogated for over 9 hours by the ED on November 17 last year in connection with another money-laundering case linked to alleged illegal mining in the state.

Furthermore, the central probe agency is investigating more than a dozen land deals, including one related to defence land, wherein a group of mafia, middlemen and bureaucrats allegedly connived to forge deeds and documents of as long back as 1932.

ED arrested several people so far in the state, including Soren’s political aide Pankaj Mishra.

Soren was initially summoned by the ED on November 3, 2022, but he didn’t appear citing official engagements. He even dared the central probe agency to arrest him and then sought a 3-week deferment of the summons.

While the ruling JMM has alleged that the CM is being made a political victim, the BJP last week stated with the “kind of corruption”and has committed in the state, Soren will not get any relief from any court and he will have to eventually face ED probe.