May 22nd 2024.
A major setback has struck former Jharkhand Chief Minister Hemant Soren as the Supreme Court has declined to consider his plea to challenge his arrest in a money laundering case involving an alleged land scam. The court, presided over by Justice Dipankar Datta, expressed dissatisfaction towards senior advocate Kapil Sibal, who represented Soren, for pursuing "parallel proceedings". The judge pointed out that the plea submitted to the apex court did not mention the special court's decision to take action against Soren based on the Enforcement Directorate's complaint.
Justice Datta reminded everyone present that Soren's previous petition, which was rendered ineffective after the high court rejected his writ petition against the arrest on May 3, failed to disclose the fact that a bail petition was pending before the special court. The bench raised concerns about the concealment of vital information in Soren's petitions and proceeded to dismiss the plea, stating that the petitioner did not approach the highest judicial body with honesty and transparency.
In response, Sibal sought permission to withdraw the petition and requested the Jharkhand High Court to decide Soren's plea in a timely manner. Eventually, the plea was dismissed as withdrawn. However, the court was not convinced by the argument that a cognisance order would not prevent Soren's release, especially when the arrest itself was deemed illegal due to the alleged illegal possession of land, which is not listed as a scheduled offence under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act, 2002.
On Tuesday, the Supreme Court questioned Soren if it was appropriate for him to challenge the legality of his arrest after the special court had taken cognisance of the ED's complaint and rejected his bail plea. It also raised doubts about the admissibility of Soren's plea, given that the order denying bail stated that there was a strong case against the accused. Prior to this, the Jharkhand High Court had rejected the writ petition filed by the JMM leader against his arrest by the ED, citing an "abundance of evidence" that justified the arrest and detention of the petitioner.
Hemant Soren had resigned as the chief minister on January 31, following notification from the ED that he would be arrested in a money laundering case.
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