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CM Soren skips ED summons again, Jharkhand high court to hear matter on October 6
Earlier, Soren had skipped summons by the federal agency on August 7, August 15, September 9, and September 23. On September 23, Soren moved the high court, challenging the summons and certain sections of the PMLA Act. However, the high court has yet to hear the matter.
Jharkhand chief minister Hemant Soren skipped the fifth summons issued by the Directorate of Enforcement (ED) on Wednesday against an ongoing money laundering probe related to an alleged land scam, even as the Jharkhand high court agreed to hear the writ petition moved by him against the summons on October 6.
Instead of attending the summons, the chief minister participated in a government function in Palamu district, inaugurating a processing plant of the state-owned Medha Dairy.
Earlier, Soren had skipped summons by the federal agency on August 7, August 15, September 9, and September 23. On September 23, Soren moved the high court, challenging the summons and certain sections of the PMLA Act. However, the high court has yet to hear the matter.
“It is likely to take time as the petitioner has not mentioned it for an urgent hearing before the court. Unless the petitioner pleads for an urgent hearing, the cases are listed as per the pendency of petitions,” said a high court official.
Before moving to the Jharkhand high court, Soren had approached the Supreme Court, which on September 18 had refused to entertain his petition against the ED summons, asking him to approach the jurisdictional High Court first.
While the ruling Jharkhand Mukti Morcha (JMM) described the ED action as a “witch hunt by the Centre against opposition parties”, the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) alleged on Wednesday that the chief minister was running away from questioning due to fear of action.
“He (Soren) is an elected CM. He is the chief minister for us as well. And we want him to cooperate in a criminal investigation. Why is he afraid if he has nothing to hide?” said Jharkhand BJP spokesperson Pratul Shahdeo.
Reacting to the comments, JMM spokesperson Manoj Pandey said the BJP was targeting the chief minister as he was gaining popularity. “The BJP is afraid of his popularity because the government is delivering on all the promises despite several obstacles. Our leader has approached the court, and we are confident we will get justice,” added Pandey.
