Jharkhand Chief Minister Hemant Soren has communicated his availability to the Enforcement Directorate (ED) for questioning on January 31 (Wednesday) in connection with a money-laundering case linked to an alleged land scam, according to sources in the JMM cited by news agency ANI on Monday.
Earlier in the day, an ED team visited Soren's Delhi residence amid media attention as part of a money laundering investigation. PTI reports suggested a potential link to the case for which the Jharkhand CM underwent questioning by the central agency on January 20.
Describing Soren as a 'bhagoda' (fugitive), Jharkhand BJP chief Babulal Marandi mocked the CM, stating, "Due to the fear of ED officials, information about the disappearance of the Chief Minister [Hemant Soren] is being received through news channels. If there is truth in this news, then it is a situation of constitutional crisis for Jharkhand."
On Saturday (January 27), the ED reportedly wrote to Soren, requesting him to provide a date for questioning on January 29 or 31, warning that failure to comply would result in a visit from the agency's investigators. Soren had responded to the ED's earlier summons on January 25, indicating that he would reply to the letter in due course. The ED issued Soren the ninth summons on January 13, directing him to be available for questioning between January 27 and 31 in the case. So far, the Jharkhand CM has received ten summons from the agency related to the investigation.