Money laundering case: The Enforcement Directorate (ED) has issued a fresh summons to Jharkhand Chief Minister Hemant Soren for questioning in a money-laundering case related to an alleged land scam on Tuesday (December 12), according to official sources.
Soren, 48, has been summoned to appear at the regional office of the Enforcement Directorate in the Hinoo area in Ranchi for recording his statement under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA), according to official sources on Monday. The summons for the chief minister is for December 12, the sources said.
6th notice to Hemant Soren
This is the sixth notice from the Enforcement Directorate, but he has not appeared for questioning. He filed petitions in the Supreme Court and later in the Jharkhand High Court seeking protection from ED action, terming the summons as "unwarranted". However, both the courts had dismissed his petition.
Soren, a leader of the Jharkhand Mukti Morcha (JMM), asserted in the high court that the summons were issued against him with "malice," and false allegations were made with the sole intention of creating political uncertainty and unrest in the state.
The summons was issued to him for August 14. The probe pertains to the ED alleging that a "huge racket of illegal change of ownership of land by mafia was going on in Jharkhand".
ED arrested 14 people
The Enforcement Directorate has arrested 14 people in connection with the case, including Chhavi Ranjan, a 2011-batch Indian Administrative Service (IAS) officer who had previously served as the director of the state social welfare department and deputy commissioner of Ranchi.
Soren was questioned by the ED in November last year in another money-laundering case linked to alleged illegal mining in the state.
(With PTI inputs)
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