Hemant Soren Arrested by ED in Jharkhand Land Scam Case

2024-02-01 01:11:53

More than seven hours related to the land scam Jharkhand Chief Minister Hemant Soren was arrested by the ED after lengthy interrogation. After the questioning, Soren had submitted his resignation from the post of Chief Minister. Soon after, Soren was arrested by the Enforcement Directorate (ED) at Raj Bhavan in Ranchi on Wednesday evening. He will be produced in court on Thursday and remanded in custody, ED sources said.

The investigating agency said Soren was questioned as part of an investigation into a huge racket involving illegal transfer of land ownership in Jharkhand. Meanwhile, after Soren resigned as Chief Minister, Minister Champai Soren, who is the chief ministerial face of the ruling coalition, submitted his claim to form the new government to the Governor. Earlier there were rumors that Soren’s wife Kalpana Soren might become the chief minister.

Meanwhile, Hemant Soren filed a police complaint against the Enforcement Directorate officials on Wednesday morning, demanding action under the Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes (Prevention of Atrocities) Act. A prohibitory order under Section 144 was announced in Jharkhand capital Ranchi in the wake of the interrogation. A three-member team has been formed to monitor the law and order situation in the city. More than 7,000 policemen were also deployed with special focus on strategic locations.

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ED says there is strong evidence against Hemant Soren in three money laundering cases in Jharkhand – land scam, coal scam and mining scam. It is reported that some have leaked the names of Soren and his close relatives during the interrogation in the money laundering case. The Enforcement Directorate had on Wednesday written to the Jharkhand government seeking additional security, activating the possibility of arrest. The investigation agency made this demand in view of the possibility of law and order problems in Soren’s interrogation.