Jharkhand CM Hemant Soren Summoned Again in Land Grabbing Money Laundering Case
New Delhi, Sep 17 – The Enforcement Directorate (ED) has issued a fresh summons to Jharkhand Chief Minister Hemant Soren in connection with a money laundering case related to land grabbing. The CM has been asked to join the investigation on September 23, which marks the fourth time he has been summoned. Previously, Soren had moved to the Supreme Court after receiving the fresh summons.
Last year, Soren was questioned by the ED for around 10 hours along with his wife in relation to an illegal mining case. This time, the ED has arrested 13 individuals, including an IAS officer, in connection with the land grabbing and money laundering case. The investigation revealed that the accused had used forged documents dating back to 1932 to wrongfully seize people’s lands. They would deceive victims by claiming that their lands had already been sold by their fathers or grandfathers.
During a raid at the residence of the Chief Minister’s legislator representative Pankaj Mishra, the ED discovered a checkbook linked to Soren’s bank account, leading to their involvement in the case. Mishra was subsequently arrested. The accused not only fraudulently occupied lands leased to the army but also sold them elsewhere. The agency also seized a large number of fake deeds from their possession, further substantiating the fraudulent activities.
The case, although originating in Jharkhand, extends to Bihar and Kolkata due to the ramifications of the accused’s actions. It was found that they would use pre-Independence and fake documents from 1932 to assert their ownership of lands, even in areas that did not exist before independence. The ED’s forensic examination of the seized documents revealed their forgery, as the districts’ names that were mentioned did not exist during that time, and old documents used PIN codes from the 1970s.
As a result of aiding the IAS officer Chhavi Ranjan, the ED later arrested her as well. The investigation has highlighted the intricate web of corruption and illicit activities surrounding land grabbing and money laundering in the region. The ED’s relentless efforts to uncover the truth and bring the culprits to justice have shed light on the magnitude of the issue.
The fresh summons to Chief Minister Hemant Soren reflects the continued focus of the investigation on identifying all those involved in the land grabbing and money laundering case. As the probe intensifies, it remains to be seen how the Chief Minister will respond to the summons and whether more names will be revealed in this complex web of corruption.
