"Bogey Of Political Vendetta": Jharkhand High Court Dismisses Hemant Soren's Plea Against ED Arrest In Illegal Land Case

Former Jharkhand Chief Minister Hemant Soren's plea challenging summons and arrest by the Enforcement Directorate (ED) was dismissed by Jharkhand High Court on Friday (3 May) in the land scam case.

Soren had argued that his arrest was part of the BJP's "game plan" against the opposition, namely INDI Alliance. However, the bench of acting Chief Justice Shree Chandrashekhar and Justice Navneet Kumar was not convinced.

"...The petitioner cannot wriggle out of the mess he created for himself. Like the last resort to a losing litigant, an anxious petitioner has raised the bogey of political vendetta," the bench said mentioning cash found at Soren's Delhi residence.

Soren was arrested on 31 January over alleged illegal possession of 8.46 acres of land in Ranchi. His name in the case emerged after the arrest of Bhanu Pratap Prasad, a land revenue inspector of the concerned area.

"There is an abundance of documents that lay a foundation for the arrest and remand of the petitioner to police and judicial custody. At this stage, this is not possible to hold that the ED has proceeded against the petitioner for no reason," the bench noted.

The High Court did not find any substance in Soren's submission that he was not accused of committing a scheduled offence and not connected with any proceeds of crime and his challenge against prosecution was rejected.

While Soren is in jail, his wife Kalpana is set for an electoral debut by contesting the by-poll from the Gandey Assembly seat, which is scheduled for 20 May, coinciding with the parliamentary elections in Jharkhand.