SLEUTHS of the Enforcement Directorate (ED)on Saturday interrogated Jharkhand CM Hemant Soren for over seven hours in connection with a money laundering case linked to land deals, following which he claimed that a conspiracy was hatched against him. The entire area has turned into a virtual fortress with heavy deployment of security forces, an official said. Soren, 48, who is also the executive president of the ruling Jharkhand Mukti Morcha, had earlier skipped seven summonses by the ED Hefinally gave hisconsent afterthe probe agency summoned him for the eighth time. The ED sleuths reached Soren’s residence around 1 pm, the official said. Security personnel, deployed inlarge numbers at the spot, are using high-resolution body cameras to keep trackof activities aroundthe house, he said.

 

The measure comes inthe wake of the recent attack on ED officials in West Bengal duringaraidpertainingtoan alleged multi-crore ration distribution scam. Meanwhile, the JMM convened a meeting of its legislators at Soren’s residence. “TheEDisquestioningthe CM.We are also holding our meeting. Any strategy about the future course of action will be made based on the outcome of the questioning,” JMM General Secretary and spokesperson Supriyo Bhattacharya told PTI. Jamtara MLA Irfan Ansari, who met Soren before being quizzed by the ED officials, saidtheChief Minister asked party workers to be patient.

 

“The CM, after seeing me, turned emotional and asked us to have patience,” Ansari said. Asked about the protest by tribals against the ED summons to Soren, Bhattacharya said it was spontaneous, and the JMM had not taken any call on that. JMM workers armed with bows and arrows were reportedly spotted around 100 metres from the CM’s residence. Congress’Jharkhand president Rajesh Thakur said that party MLAs were also presenttoexpress solidaritywith Soren. Jharkhand Advocate General Rajiv Ranjan, DGP Ajay Kumar Singh, Deputy Commissioner, Ranchi, Rahul Kumar Sinha and SSP Chandan Kumar Sinha are also at Soren’s residence in view of the ED questioning. The investigationpertains to a “huge racket of illegal change of ownership of land by the mafia” in Jharkhand, according to the central probe agency. It has so far arrested 14 people inthe case, including 2011-batchIASofficerChhavi Ranjan, who served as the Director of the State’s Social Welfare Department and deputy commissioner of Ranchi. JMM MLA Ramdas Soren claimed that this was an attempt to destabilise the Jharkhand Government.