Supreme Court Stays ED Proceedings Against Jharkhand CM Hemant Soren, Issues Notice

New Delhi/Ranchi: In a significant relief for Jharkhand Chief Minister Hemant Soren, the Supreme Court on Wednesday stayed the ongoing proceedings in a money laundering case filed by the Enforcement Directorate (ED) against him. A bench comprising Chief Justice D.Y. Chandrachud, Justice Joymalya Bagchi, and Justice Vipul M. Pancholi issued a notice to the ED on Soren’s plea. The CM had sought quashing of the case.

Soren Challenges ED Summons in Supreme Court

In his petition, Soren challenged repeated summons issued to him by the ED and sought relief from the agency’s continued investigation. He also challenged the recent Jharkhand High Court decision that had refused to quash the case against him.

Background of the ED Action in the Land Scam

The ED had filed a case based on a complaint taken cognizance of by a special MP-MLA court, linking Soren to alleged irregularities in land dealings. On January 15, the Supreme Court had earlier refused to quash the proceedings, which was seen as a setback for the Jharkhand Mukti Morcha (JMM) leader. Despite repeated summons, Soren had not appeared before the ED, prompting the agency to register a formal complaint against him.

Allegations in the Jharkhand Land Scam

The ED alleges that Soren misused his position to illegally acquire plots of land. The complaint involved land originally belonging to the military and tribal communities. The Ranchi Municipal Corporation had registered an FIR over the sale of army land using forged documents. Soren had previously been arrested and spent 149 days in custody during the investigation.

With the Supreme Court’s latest order, the proceedings in the ED case have been put on hold, providing temporary relief to the Jharkhand CM.