The Enforcement Directorate (ED) produced former Jharkhand Chief Minister Hemant Soren's WhatsApp chats with his close aide in court to secure his further remand on Wednesday. The ED, which arrested Soren on January 31, said these documents and chats contained details of several properties with direct links to the alleged land scam in Jharkhand.
A special Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA) court on Wednesday extended the ED remand of the former chief minister by five days till February 12 in a money laundering case linked to an alleged land scam.
Soren, JMM executive president, on February 2 was remanded to five days of ED custody by the special PMLA which ended on Wednesday.
During the hearing on Wednesday, Hemant Soren was confronted about his chats on WhatsApp with his close associate Binod Singh. The chats, as per the probe agency, not only include the exchange of confidential information regarding several properties but also incriminating information relating to transfer postings, sharing of government records, etc., from which a huge amount of money appears to have been generated and transacted.
Additionally, Binod Singh had chats with several other persons regarding the transfer of officials, possession, and sharing of several admit cards of students appearing for competitive exams held by the Jharkhand Staff Selection Commission, etc., the ED stated.
Some of his chats regarding the transfer posting of bureaucrats are going viral.
Meanwhile, Hemant Soren's lawyer told the court that he was being kept in a "basement with no ventilation" with the constant presence of armed guards. Advocate general Rajeev Ranjan, who appeared for Soren, alleged that the JMM leader had already been interrogated for 120 hours in five days. He also said that the basement room where Soren is kept has no windows or access to sunlight.
Published By:
Srishti Jha
Published On:
Feb 8, 2024
English (US) ·