Hemant Soren denied interim bail in land scam case

The Special PMLA Court in Ranchi declined to grant interim bail to former Jharkhand Chief Minister Hemant Soren in a land scam case on Saturday. Former Chief Minister Hemant Soren had sought interim bail of 13 days from the court to attend the funeral of his uncle, a plea which the court denied.

On Wednesday, former Jharkhand Chief Minister Hemant Soren also moved the Supreme Court seeking relief challenging his arrest.

Senior Advocate Kapil Sibal, representing Hemant Soren, informed the Apex Court bench that the Jharkhand High Court had reserved the order on Soren’s petition challenging his arrest in the last week of February, but the judgment has not yet been delivered. He sought an urgent hearing due to the ongoing Lok Sabha poll, stating that the election would conclude, and he would remain incarcerated.

Justice Khanna stated that the Chief Justice secretariat would make a decision and instructed the advocate to notify it once done.

In February, the Jharkhand High Court reserved its decision on Soren’s plea challenging his arrest.

The ex-chief minister, in his petition before the High Court, asserted that his arrest was unjustified and his remand in the matter was arbitrary and unlawful. Hemant Soren, filing the petition through advocate Pragya Baghel, labeled his arrest as illegal and malicious. Concurrently, he sought interim bail. After a prolonged period of speculation in the media and a game of cat and mouse, former Jharkhand Chief Minister and Jharkhand Mukti Morcha (JMM) Chairperson Hemant Soren was arrested by the Directorate of Enforcement (ED) in the land scam case in January.

The investigation revolves around substantial proceeds of crime generated through the falsification of official records by presenting ‘fake sellers’ and buyers through forged or bogus documents to acquire extensive land parcels valued in crores.