The Enforcement Directorate (ED) has issued a fresh summon to Jharkhand CM Hemant Soren to remain available for his questioning in the land scam case between January 27 and January 31st.
But the anti-money federal agency may face hindrance as Soren has told in advance that he may not be available till March due to tight official schedules and engagements.
However, the agency sent him the ninth summons on Monday. The CM had told ED officials on January 20 regarding his schedule.
Highly placed sources familiar with the development confided that on January 20, the ED questioned him for around seven hours after which Soren was informally told that the agency would require his questioning on another date also.
The CM allegedly told ED officials that he has a very busy official schedule till March dropping enough hints that he is not ready for another round of questioning. However, the ED considered it yet another dilatory tactic of CM Soren to linger the probe against him.
It took the ED more than five months to persuade Soren to record his statement in the land scam case bearing ECIR no. RNZO/25/2023.
Soren allegedly grabbed a costly parcel of 8.46 acres of land located at Bariatu locality in Ranchi in 2010 by misuse of his official position.
The aforesaid land under question is said to belong to tribals.
The ED served him the first summons on August 14 last year. Soren ignored the summons and questioned the legality and motives of the agency. Lastly, the ED in a tersely written letter cum summon gave him the last opportunity and warned him of serious consequences resulting in his arrest if he continues to disobey summons.
However, during questioning Soren denied and said that he neither grabbed any land nor the aforesaid land is under his possession. But ED said that they have sufficient evidence to nail him.
During a raid in another land scam case related to the Indian Army, the ED seized many official documents from the residence of a revenue official Bhanu Pratap Prasad who in an unauthorised way had kept official documents. The ED stumbled upon electronic evidence suggesting that senior revenue official Manoj Kumar had directed circle officer Bhanu Pratap Prasad to conduct a survey and verification of this land.
Ranchi police lodged an FIR against Bhanu Pratap Prasad for illegally possessing government documents. The ED took up this case for investigation which is now proving a Gordian knot for Jharkhand CM.
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