Soren’s assets double in 4 years

Assets of Jharkhand CM Shibu Soren, his wife and one of their sons, Hemant, as reflected in the chief minister’s latest affidavit, stand at Rs 84 lakh -a sharp increase of more than 100 per cent from Rs 38 lakh recorded in 2004.

Jharkhand Chief Minister Shibu Soren’s assets have more than doubled in just four years time.

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This is according to the former Union Coal Minister’s admission before the returning officer for the Tamar assembly byelection. But what is surprising is that his wife Rupi Soren, a housewife, is richer than her husband.

Assets of Soren, his wife and one of their sons, Hemant, as reflected in the chief minister’s latest affidavit, stand at Rs 84 lakh -a sharp increase of more than 100 per cent from Rs 38 lakh recorded in 2004.

His wife’s property has spiralled from Rs 26.24 lakh in 2004 to over 50 lakh this year.

Significantly, the Jharkhand Mukti Morcha chief owed Rs 64.38 lakh to the Income Tax department, Rs 5.80 lakh to the Government of Delhi on account of charges for power and water consumption. This apart, from the Rs 2.47 lakh he owes to Bharat Sanchar Nigam Limited as outstanding bills. Soren, in his affidavit, said he had challenged the outstanding bills in the concerned courts.

According to the affidavit, Soren has 42 acres of agricultural land and property at his native Nemra village in Gola block of Hazaribagh district.

There is no proof whether he had purchased any more land for agriculture purposes, but his family has added to the stretch of non-agricultural land at prime places in Delhi and other cities of the state during the last four years.