Amid speculations of the arrest of Jharkhand chief minister Hemant Soren, the Enforcement Directorate (ED) reached his residence in Ranchi for questioning in the money laundering case. Ahead of the ED’s questioning, the ruling JMM-Congress alliance displayed strength as a large number of party workers assembled outside the residence of Hemant Soren, forcing the state police to impose Section 144 around the area.
The ED questioning comes a day after high-voltage drama erupted in Jharkhand as the Opposition BJP claimed that the chief minister is “on the run” from the federal agency and even released his “missing” posters with ₹11,000 reward on credible information about Hemant Soren.
The chaos came as a federal agency reached Hemant Soren’s Delhi residence for questioning on Monday but claimed that they were unable to locate the JMM leader. The ED searched the Delhi residence of the Jharkhand chief minister and seized his BMW car and ₹36 lakh in cash on the basis of some “incriminating evidence.”
Meanwhile, Hemant Soren resurfaced in Ranchi on Tuesday and as the ED kept a close eye on the airports in Delhi, the Jharkhand CM chose to take a 1,200 road trip to home. In Ranchi, Hemant Soren attended the formal events and when asked about his whereabouts, the Jharkhand CM said that he resides in the hearts of the people.
What if Hemant Soren gets arrested?
The ruling JMM-Congress coalition has discussed the possibility of the arrest of the Jharkhand CM Hemant Soren and as per the reports, his wife Kalpana Soren is the frontrunner to replace him as the next chief minister. Earlier this month, JMM MLA Sarfaraz Ahmad resigned from his seat and that will likely clear the path for Kalpana Soren to enter the state assembly.
“You can see how the Central Government and BJP are hatching a conspiracy to destabilize & topple governments and form their own government in non-BJP ruled states. So, the party is prepared to face and tackle all conspiracies. But no such situation will arise as all the MLAs in the alliance are united. Hemant Soren will be the CM…We are hearing it from the media,” JMM MP Mahua Maji said.
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Published: 31 Jan 2024, 02:16 PM IST