SC refuses to entertain Hemant Soren’s plea in money laundering case.
The Supreme Court has denied relief to former Jharkhand Chief Minister Hemant Soren, who had challenged his arrest by the Enforcement Directorate in an alleged money laundering case related to a land scam in the state.
A vacation bench of Justices Dipankar Datta and Satish Chandra Sharma pulled up Soren for concealing that he had already filed a bail plea in a trial court. His conduct was found not above board.
Senior advocate Kapil Sibal, representing Soren, then withdrew the application. The development means Soren cannot campaign for the upcoming Lok Sabha polls.
The bench observed that Soren’s case was different from Delhi CM Arvind Kejriwal‘s, who was granted interim bail earlier to campaign. Unlike Kejriwal, a trial court in Soren’s case has taken cognizance of offenses under PMLA, and his bail plea was rejected.
The SC highlighted that the lower court order taking cognizance was based on its prima facie view regarding incriminating material against Soren. It questioned the validity of Soren’s challenge against the arrest in light of the existing judicial pronouncement.
The court’s firm stance has denied Soren relief in his legal battle against the ED in the money laundering matter, which is being probed for an alleged land scam during his tenure as minister in Jharkhand.
