Hemant Soren Leaves For ED Office, Terms The Probe 'BJP Conspiracy' To Dislodge Jharkhand Government

While speaking to Outlook, senior BJP leader and MLA Navin Jaiswal says, ‘We didn’t ask him to assign mine lease to his name as a Chief Minister. This is just his political stunt.'

Abhik Bhattacharya

Updated on: 17 November 2022 8:55 am

Hemant Soren addressing media

Jharkhand Chief Minister Hemant Soren today while leaving for the office of Enforcement Directorate said that the whole investigation is a part of larger conspiracy of the BJP to destabilise the Jharkhand Mukti Mocha-led state government.

Amidst the chants of ‘Jai Jharkhand’, Soren addressed the media and thousands of supporters who gathered outside CM’s office and said that he has already written a letter to ED mentioning how a 1000 crores illegal mining scam comes from Sahebgunj wherein “the state doesn’t even earn Rs. 1000 crores from stone chips.”

He also said that the centre probe agency should have done proper investigation before pressing allegations.

Soren, who has the popular supports of Jharhandis due to his passing of domicile policy, Sarna code and other Adivasi-friendly measures, further added that since the JMM government has been formed the opposition BJP has been trying to topple the government. “This long term conspiracy is now bubbling out on the surface,” he said.

Also Read| Hemant Soren’s Masterstroke: Jharkhand Assembly Passes Domicile Policy, OBC Quota Bills Amidst ED Rows

In reference to the reports that a letter has been sent by the Election Commission to the Governor Ramesh Bias recommending disqualification of Soren as MLA for violating the Representation of People’s Act, 1951 by assigning a mine to his name using his office for profit, the JMM leader said, “Governor told us that he has sought the second opinion from the EC but when wAe approached them, we got to know that they haven’t received any such request.”

the seeking of ‘second opinion’ as ‘unconstitutional’, he continued, “The Governor is perhaps waiting for the right time to open the envelope to tell us the EC recommendation.” Connecting the dots he said that Governor’s statement to media is followed by ED summons and the raids by income tax departments into the house of ruling JMM MLAs.

Taking jibe at the way summons are being sent to him the CM said, “I am a Chief Minister serving a constitutional post but the way summons are being sent, one cannot help but think whether I am fleeing out of the country!”

Earlier, Soren was called by the ED on November 3 when he skipped the meeting and went to Raipur to attend a pre-scheduled Adivasi programme.

ED gave summons to Soren soon after it filed chargesheet against one of his aides Pankaj Mishra along with Bacchu Yadav and Prem Prakash related to a money laundering case. According to the chargesheet filed by ED, Mishra who was arrested by the central probe agency in June this year has ‘clout’ over the mining department due to his alleged connections to the CM. Mishra allegedly runs illegal mining business in Soren’s assembly constituency Barhait.

Hemant Soren’s written response to ED

In his written response to the ED Soren, noted that “to embezzle ₹ 1,000 crore, illegal mining would have to be four times the legal mining.”

Referring to the huge amount of railway and transportations required for such scams he said, “To transport this, one would need 20,000 railway rakes or 33 lakh trucks. The Railways would not transport it without a valid document. Have you acted against any railway official?”

He also noted the income of the state from the mines in last two years and said, “The whole state earns ₹ 750 crore in the past two years, the period during which you have alleged a ₹ 1,000-crore scam. I think you have not taken note of these facts and data before making allegations.”

‘We didn’t ask him to assign lease to his name’: BJP MLA

While JMM has refuted the allegation of corruption, Jharkhand BJP leader and Ranchi-Hatia MLA Naveen Jaiswal told Outlook, “ED, Income Tax these all are constitutional bodies. If the government ministers have confidence in constitution let them go by the summon and come clean.”

Responding to the allegations of Soren that it is all conspiracy of BJP Jaiswal said, “It is very easy to blame BJP. He himself as a Chief Minister and mining minister assigned lease of mines to his names. Did BJP asked him to do so? His aides all are behind jail and whenever ED is probing, BJP is responsible!”

He also added that it is nothing but a “political stunt’ of Hemant Soren to accuse BJP of conspiracy.