In a significant turn of events, Jharkhand Chief Minister Hemant Soren has lodged a complaint against four Enforcement Directorate (ED) officials, including Additional Director Kapil Raj, accusing them of multiple violations of the Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes (Prevention of Atrocities) Act.
Soren filed the complaint with the ST/SC police station in Ranchi on Wednesday, naming Kapil Raj, Deovrat Jha, Anupam Kumar, and Aman Patel, alongside other unnamed ED officials, for allegedly violating the atrocity law.
This development unfolds amidst speculation that the ED might take action against Soren in connection with the agency’s probe under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act. The probe revolves around Soren’s alleged involvement in the ownership of a 7.16-acre land parcel in Bajra area, Ranchi, acquired through the proceeds of a crime related to the illegal sale of army land.
While dismissing the case as politically motivated, Soren asserts that the details of his assets are in the public domain. The ED has already made 14 arrests in the case, including prominent figures like Chhavi Ranjan, Bhanu Pratap Prasad, and businessmen Amit Agrawal and Bishnu Agrawal.
The FIR filed by Soren is under Section 3 (1) (p), (r), (s), and (u) of the SC/ST atrocity law. These sections deal with instituting false or malicious suits or criminal proceedings, intentionally insulting or intimidating with the intent to humiliate, abusing any member of ST by caste name, and attempting to promote feelings of enmity against ST members.
In the FIR, Soren alleges that the ED officials conducted a search operation at Jharkhand Bhawan in Delhi and the south Delhi house rented by the state government on January 29 without any prior information to him. He claims that the search was intended to harass and defame him and his community, considering his belonging to a Scheduled Tribe.
Soren further contends that the ED officials, by informing the media of the intended search, aimed to create a spectacle and cause disrepute in the eyes of the general public. He denies ownership of any illicit cash and challenges the ED’s attempt to link him to the seized blue BMW car, alleging that the officials leaked selective misinformation.
The faceoff between Hemant Soren and the ED officials adds another layer of complexity to the ongoing investigation, with political and legal implications.
