28 Jun. 24: Former Jharkhand Chief Minister Hemant Soren has been granted bail by the Jharkhand High Court in a high-profile land scam case, reported eNewsroom. Soren, who had been in jail for five months, was released after the court found “reason to believe” in his innocence, casting doubts on the Enforcement Directorate’s (ED) investigation.
Soren, a prominent tribal leader and the working president of Jharkhand’s ruling party, was accused in connection with an 8.86-acre land deal in Baragain, Ranchi. The ED alleged that documents related to the land were recovered from Soren’s residence, implicating him in the illegal acquisition and possession of the property.
Upon his release, Soren addressed the media, claiming that his bail signified a conspiracy against him.
“The bail I received carries a message that there was a conspiracy against me. I was implicated in a false case and jailed for 5 months,” he stated.
He also highlighted the plight of other journalists and politicians, including Delhi CM Arvind Kejriwal, who are currently imprisoned.
According to the eNewsroom report, the court’s detailed 55-page order noted significant inconsistencies in the ED’s case. It pointed out that there was no substantial evidence directly linking Soren to the land acquisition. The court emphasized that none of the land’s registers or revenue records bore Soren’s involvement and questioned why no complaints were filed against him until 2023 if the alleged acquisition occurred in 2010.
The ruling mentioned that the ED’s claim of preventing illegal acquisition through timely action was ambiguous and unsupported by concrete evidence. Consequently, the court concluded that the conditions under Section 45 of the PMLA, 2002, were satisfied, warranting Soren’s bail.
During his incarceration, Soren’s wife, Kalpana Soren, won a by-election for the Gandey assembly seat. Meanwhile, the Jharkhand Mukti Morcha (JMM) secured three reserved seats in the Lok Sabha elections. However, the political landscape saw a shift as Soren’s sister-in-law, Sita Soren, defected to the BJP but lost the Lok Sabha election to JMM candidate Nalin Soren.
The Jharkhand High Court’s decision to grant bail to Hemant Soren has raised questions about the validity of the ED’s investigation, potentially reshaping the political dynamics in Jharkhand.
