SC seeks ED’s reply by May 17 on ex-Jharkhand Soren’s plea against his arrest

NEW DELHI: The Supreme Court on Monday issued notice and sought the Enforcement Directorate’s (ED) reply by May 17, after hearing an appeal filed by the former Chief Minister of Jharkhand, Hemant Soren, challenging his arrest in a money laundering case arising out of an alleged land scam case.

Soren, the Jharkhand Mukti Morcha (JMM) leader, had moved the apex court challenging the rejection of his plea challenging the arrest by the ED in the case by the Jharkhand HC.

A two-judge bench of the top court, led by Justice Sanjiv Khanna and Justice Dipankar Datta, asked the ED to file its reply on Soren’s appeal and fixed the matter for further hearing to May 17.

During the course of the hearing on Monday, Justice Khanna asked Kapil Sibal, senior lawyer for Soren, as to whether he (Soren) was in possession of the land. To this, Sibal replied no.

“I (Soren) have never been. It is nothing to do with the land. If they say forcible possession, it is not even a scheduled offence,” Sibal said and claimed innocence in the case.

But the top court observed that everybody including the person in actual occupation of the land had made a statement that Soren had possession.

The apex court today, which was initially wanted to list the matter on May 20, had to change the date to May 17, after Sibal said polls would be over by then and he would be prejudiced if the long date is given in the matter.

In a similar development in the same case, a Special Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA) court in Ranchi on Monday rejected his bail plea in the matter. The former CM, Soren had filed a petition for bail in the PMLA court on April 15.