RANCHI: In yet another disappointment to Chief Minister Hemant Soren, the Jharkhand High Court on Wednesday refused to stay the framing of charges against him by the special PMLA court in Ranchi in a money laundering case linked to an 8.86-acre land parcel in the Bargai area of Ranchi.
Soren had approached the High Court challenging the maintainability of the framing of charges in the PMLA court in Ranchi. A partial hearing on the matter took place on September 29, during which the court of Chief Justice MS Sonak and Justice Manoj Prasad scheduled a detailed hearing for Wednesday, September 30, at 2:15 PM.
Notably, during the previous hearing on September 24, the Chief Minister’s counsel had sought time to verify documents held by the ED that were not relied upon. Consequently, September 30 was fixed as the next date of hearing. Meanwhile, Soren filed a petition in the Jharkhand High Court challenging the maintainability of the framing of charges against him.
During the hearing on Wednesday, the court sought a response from the Enforcement Directorate (ED) and directed the Central Government to file its reply. The next hearing is scheduled for October 28.
The High Court, however, did not grant a stay on the proceedings regarding the framing of charges currently underway in the special court. The court clarified that the plea to halt proceedings based on the High Court petition alone would not be entertained.
Consequently, the decks are cleared for the process of framing charges against Hemant Soren by the special PMLA court in Ranchi. The special PMLA court has directed Hemant Soren to appear before it at 4:15 PM.
Earlier, Chief Minister Hemant Soren had filed an Interlocutory Application (IA) in the High Court seeking exemption from personal appearance before the special PMLA court.
However, on September 18, the bench of Justice Sujit Narayan Prasad dismissed the petition while hearing the matter.
Now, the Chief Minister has challenged the constitutional validity of Section 44(1)(d) of the Prevention of Money Laundering Act.