Produce record of proceedings in PILs against Soren: Supreme Court to Jharkhand

A bench of justices U U Lalit and S Ravindra Bhat was hearing the matter when it ordered the government to produce the record by Wednesday.

 The Supreme Court on Friday directed the Jharkhand government to produce a record of proceedings in three public interest litigations (PILs) pending before Jharkhand high court against chief minister Hemant Soren over alleged irregularities in grant of a mining lease and in MNREGA contracts, and transactions of some shell companies reportedly operated by his family.

One of the petitions which was filed on February 16 last year pertains to the alleged issuance of a mining lease by Soren, who also holds the mining portfolio, in his name last year. The chief minister has dismissed the allegation. (HT Photo)

A bench of justices U U Lalit and S Ravindra Bhat was hearing the matter when it ordered the government to produce the record by Wednesday.

“The petitioner (Jharkhand government) shall place a copy of the case record along with annexure and all pleadings exchanged between the parties,” the bench said as it fixed August 17 as the next date of hearing.

The high court, on June 3, had accepted the maintainability of the two petitions filed by Shiv Shankar Sharma, seeking inquiry by the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) and Enforcement Directorate (ED) against the chief minister and his family members.

One of the petitions which was filed on February 16 last year pertains to the alleged issuance of a mining lease by Soren, who also holds the mining portfolio, in his name last year. The chief minister has dismissed the allegation.

The second PIL, which was filed on October 10 last year, relates to allegations that Soren and his family have parked unaccounted money through their associates in shell companies.

Sharma filed a third PIL seeking ED probe into offences arising out of disbursement of MNREGA funds in 2010

The state government subsequently challenged the order in the top court which refused to pass any interim direction on the matter.

Appearing before the top court, the Jharkhand government alleged the petitions were filed with political motives to destabilise the government. It also pointed at the recent arrest of the counsel of the petitioner, Rajiv Kumar, in Kolkata for allegedly attempting to extort ₹1 crore from a city-based businessman.

The bench said it will examine whether the petitioner had raised the issue before the police or any other authority in the past. It also allowed Solicitor General Tushar Mehta and the ED to place on record the documents they wished to rely upon in the next hearing.

Advocate Abhinav Ramakrishnna, who is currently representing Sharma, told the top court that his client had earlier written a representation to the Prime Minister’s Office (PMO) over the alleged illegal mining deal.

“Did you move the police authority or file any complaint? We want to know whether it was for the first time that you came up with these allegations in your writ petitions or did you vent these allegations earlier,” the bench said.

“There appears to be two representations. We want to know what exactly is the grievance raised in the representations,” it added.

Ramakrishna told the bench that he wasn’t familiar with what transpired in the high court as he was recently roped in for the case. The top court then sought production of the entire record of proceedings pending in the high court.

Appearing for the state government, senior advocate Kapil Sibal said the high court had given all procedures a go-by in admitting the PILs on mere “suspicion of corruption”

“It is a motivated PIL and needs to be thrown out at once,” he said.