Supreme Court stays all proceedings in the ED money laundering case against Jharkhand CM Hemant Soren.
SC issues notice to ED on Soren’s plea seeking to quash the case and challenge repeated summons.
Order follows Jharkhand HC’s January 15 refusal to quash cognisance in the land scam-linked complaint.
The Supreme Court on Wednesday stayed proceedings in the money laundering case filed against Jharkhand Chief Minister Hemant Soren by the Enforcement Directorate (ED).
A bench comprising Chief Justice Surya Kant and Justices Joymalya Bagchi and Vipul M Pancholi also issued notice to the ED on a petition filed by Soren, who has sought quashing of the case. According to PTI, the top court took this step while hearing Soren’s plea.
In his petition before the Supreme Court, Soren challenged the repeated summons issued to him by the ED. He has also contested the Jharkhand High Court’s recent ruling that declined to quash the proceedings against him.
PTI reported that on January 15, the high court refused to interfere with the cognisance taken against Soren by a special MP-MLA court in a complaint case lodged by the ED. The decision came as a setback to the Jharkhand Mukti Morcha (JMM) leader.
The ED had registered the complaint against Soren for his failure to appear before the agency despite multiple summonses. The case relates to his alleged role in a land scam, PTI reported.
The matter will now proceed after the notice is served and responses are filed.
(With inputs from PTI)
