Ranchi
A special PMLA court on Wednesday extended the Enforcement Directorate (ED) remand of former Chief Minister, Hemant Soren by five days in a money laundering case linked to an alleged land scam, the lawyers said.
The former chief minister on February 2 was remanded to five days’ ED custody by the special PMLA (The Prevention of Money Laundering Act) court which ended on Wednesday. Soren was arrested on the night of January 31 after a seven-hour grilling by the ED in the money laundering case. He resigned as the chief minister before that.
Earlier during the day, the ED took the former CM to the civil court in Ranchi amid tight security. Soren waved at his supporters who raised slogans such as ‘Hemant Soren Zindabad’ and ‘Jail Ka Darwaja Tootega, Hemant Bhaiya Chootega’ (Jail doors will be broken, brother Hemant will be released).
The Advocate General who appeared for former Jharkhand CM told reporters that the ED had sought 7-day remand which is objected vehemently, with no further remand required because Soren has already been interrogated for 16 hours in January. Apart from that, he has already been interrogated for 120 hours in these five days, and so there is no case of any further remand.
On February 2, the Supreme Court refused to interfere with his arrest by the ED in a money laundering case, directing him to approach the High Court. A special PMLA court in Ranchi had previously remanded the JMM leader to ED custody for five days, beginning February 2.
