Hemant Soren Released from Jail After Bail in Land Scam Case
Ranchi (Jharkhand), June 28: Hemant Soren, the chief of Jharkhand Mukti Morcha (JMM), was released from Birsa Munda Jail after receiving bail from the Jharkhand High Court. Soren had been facing a probe in an alleged land scam case.
He left the jail on Friday evening, accompanied by his wife, Kalpana Soren, and party members. Kalpana expressed gratitude for the bail order, saying, “This day has finally come after a long time. Thank you very much.”
JMM leaders gathered outside the jail to see Soren, who was arrested by the Directorate of Enforcement (ED) in January on charges related to an alleged land scam and money laundering. One JMM leader, holding a portrait of Soren, said, “The way Dada was accused, today justice has been served to him after the honourable High Court granted him bail. I want to express my heartfelt gratitude to the honourable court on behalf of 3 crore people of entire Jharkhand.”
Another JMM leader added, “Today we are all very excited because our leader has come out of jail. He will strengthen our party and empower it.”
The investigation concerns the alleged generation of substantial proceeds through the forgery of official records, involving fake sellers and buyers to acquire large parcels of land worth crores. The ED claimed to have recovered Rs 36 lakh in cash and documents related to the investigation, alleging that Soren had acquired 8.5 acres of land through fraudulent means.
In related events, on March 22, a Special PMLA court extended Soren’s judicial custody until April 4. Soren was presented via video conferencing. The Ranchi police had also issued a notice to ED officials to join the investigation following an FIR filed by Soren under the SC/ST (Prevention of Atrocities) Act. The Jharkhand High Court had previously ordered no coercive action against ED officials after the agency filed a petition challenging Soren’s FIR.
Soren had alleged that the ED’s searches at his residences were aimed at tarnishing his image and harassing him for being a tribal. The investigation revealed that a syndicate, including Revenue Sub-Inspector Bhanu Pratap Prasad, was involved in corrupt property acquisitions. Soren’s petition to attend the Jharkhand Legislative Assembly’s budget session was dismissed by the High Court on February 29. He had resigned as Chief Minister following his arrest in the money laundering case under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act.