Jharkhand Chief Minister Hemant Soren took a decisive step on Wednesday by filing a complaint against Enforcement Directorate (ED) officials who conducted raids at his New Delhi residence on January 29 as part of a money laundering investigation. Soren, belonging to the Scheduled Tribe (ST) community, addressed the complaint to the Incharge of the SC/ST police station, alleging harassment and defamation by ED officials Kapil Raj, Deovrat Jha, Anupam Kumar, Aman Patel, and others from the Ranchi Zonal Office.
In his complaint, Soren stated that he was in New Delhi on January 27 and 28, staying at Shanti Niketan, a property leased by the state of Jharkhand for residential and office purposes. He claimed to have learned on January 29 that ED officials, along with others, allegedly searched the premises without informing him. Soren emphasized that the officials leaked selective and misleading information, asserting that a blue BMW car and a significant amount of illicit cash were seized from the premises. He refuted ownership of the BMW car and denied possession of any illicit cash.
"I am not the owner of the BMW car, as claimed by the individuals mentioned above. I do not possess any illicit cash. The intentional actions of the mentioned individuals and unidentified others, who do not belong to any Scheduled Caste or Scheduled Tribe, were undertaken to publicly humiliate me," mentioned Soren in his complaint.
This move by Soren comes just before a team of ED officials reached his residence in Ranchi to question him in connection with the ongoing money laundering probe. The Chief Minister's complaint sheds light on his assertion of innocence and challenges the credibility of the search operation conducted by the ED officials.
(With Agency Inputs)
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