The Jharkhand High Court on May 28, asked the Enforcement Directorate (ED) to file its reply on a bail petition filed by former Jharkhand Chief Minister, Hemant Soren, before June 10.
A bench of Justice Rongon Mukhopadhya, during the hearing of a petition filed by Soren seeking regular bail in connection with a money laundering case linked to an alleged land grab scam asked ED to submit its reply before the next hearing.
In the petition moved before the High Court, Soren has urged for an immediate hearing on the matter and claimed that ED was relying solely on the statements from individuals that the 8.5 acres of land in the Bargain circle belongs to him.
During the hearing on Tuesday, the ED requested time from the court for filing its reply following which Justice Mukhopadyay granted two weeks’ time to ED and scheduled the matter for hearing on June 10.
Soren on Monday has filed a fresh petition before the Jharkhand High Court seeking an immediate hearing into the matter after the Supreme Court (SC) refused to entertain his petition seeking interim relief in the same case on May 22.
Hearing on the petition, a bench of justices Dipankar Dutta and Satish Chandra Sharma on May 22 pulled up Soren for not disclosing about a cognizance taken by a Jharkhand’s trial court in April this year. A day before, the bench had observed that a trial court has already taken cognizance of the offences under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA) relying on prima facie incriminating materials against Soren and rejected his bail plea.
During the hearing the bench reminded Soren’s council Kapil Sibal, that the SC had queried about the nature of relief sought by Sibal to which he had replied ‘bail’, suppressing that the bail plea is pending before a special court.
Sibal then submitted that it was a mistake on his part and that he should have told the court in April that he was seeking release not bail.
The bench further stated that it does not approach writ petitions when aware that another forum has been approached already, while asking Sibal that whether he wants to withdraw his petition or like to be dismissed to which the latter agreed to withdraw.
Earlier during the hearing on the petition on May 17 a bench of SC had also refused to give interim relief to the former Jharkhand Chief Minister, Hemant Soren for the purpose of campaigning in the ongoing Lok Sabha elections.
While replying to Soren’s council, Sibal, the bench had stated that an interim relief would require the former Chief Minister to satisfy the court that the land claimed by the ED to be proceed of crime did not belong to him.
“Unless the bench is prima facie satisfied no order can be passed,” remarked the bench while pointing out that they (prosecution) have the statement of a person who was found in the land. There are boundary walls, they also have photographs.
Earlier Soren’s council Sibal on May 13 had requested the bench for an interim relief similar to Delhi’s Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal who was earlier granted a bail for campaigning in general election, the bench, however had listed the matter for May 17 which was later heard by a vacation bench on May 21 and 22.
Soren was arrested by the ED in connection with the money laundering case linked to alleged land scam on January 31 this year. The ED has alleged that huge amount of proceed from crime were generated through manipulation of official records involving fictitious transactions and forged documents to acquire valuable lands worth crores of rupees in the said scam.
