Jharkhand High Court Grants Relief To 4 ED Officials In Hemant Soren's FIR Under SC/ST Act; State Directed To Not Take Any Coercive Measures

The Jharkhand High Court has granted significant relief to Enforcement Directorate (ED) officials by ordering on that no coercive measures be taken against them in connection with a case stemming from an FIR filed by former Jharkhand Chief Minister Hemant Soren. The FIR, under the ST/SC Act on January 31, accused the ED officials of harassing Soren on the basis of his tribal identity, thereby tarnishing his reputation in the eyes of the public.Justice Anil Kumar Chaudhary held, “Keeping in view the aforesaid facts and circumstances of the case, as this is a nascent stage and notice has already been ordered to be issued to the opposite party No.2, this Court do not delving into the merits of the case in the absence of the opposite party No.2 at the stage but keeping in view the fact that the allegation against the petitioners relates to the discharge of the duties of the petitioners under the provisions of the PMLA, 2002 as also the bar for prosecution as contained in Section 67 of the PMLA, 2002; this Court is of the considered opinion that this is a fit case where the opposite party No.1 be directed not to take any coercive steps against the four petitioners of this case till the next date of listing of this case in connection with ST/SC P.S. Case No.06 of 2024 which is pending in the court of learned Special Judge, ST/SC Act, Ranchi.”The Enforcement Directorate (ED) officials, who were implicated in the FIR on a complaint filed by the former Chief Minister, had approached the Jharkhand High Court in their personal capacity to contest the FIR registered against them. The ED officials had refuted any claims of issuing any official statement or press release to print or electronic media regarding the search operation conducted at the premises of Soren. Additionally, they emphasized that media coverage itself does not constitute any legal offense, and there has been no media leak on the part of the petitioners.The ED Officials had argued that Soren deliberately chose to file the FIR in the state of Jharkhand to wield his political influence, given his position as the (Ex) Chief Minister. The FIR, which lodged by the Jharkhand Police under the Scheduled Caste and Scheduled Tribe (Prevention of Atrocities) Act, 1989 (SC/ST Act) at the SC/ST police station in Ranchi, was based on a complaint by Soren concerning searches conducted by the ED at his Delhi residence.The FIR listed ED Additional Director Kapil Raj, Assistant Director Deovrat Jha, and two other officials, Anuman Kumar and Aman Patel, along with unnamed officials.The FIR invoked sections of the SC/ST Act, including 3(1) (p) [instituting false, malicious or vexatious legal proceedings], (r) [intentional insult or intimidation within public law], (s) [abusing by caste name in any place within public view], and (u) [promoting feelings of enmity, hatred or ill-will]. Soren, in his complaint, alleged that the ED's search operation at his Delhi residence was conducted with the intention to harass and malign him and his community. He further claimed that ED officials had strategically leaked information to the media to create a spectacle, aiming to tarnish his reputation in the eyes of the public.It was Soren's grievance that there were extensive coverage by national and Jharkhand based print and electronic media and a presumption is drawn that it is the petitioners who have informed the media of the search so as to create a media spectacle and cause disrepute to the informant in the eyes of general public by leaking selected information that a Blue BMW Car seized from the said premises belongs to the informant and huge sums of illicit cash belonging to the informant, was found in the premises.It was asserted by Soren in the written-report itself that, “he is not the owner of the car of BMW make claimed to have been seized by the petitioners and he does not owe the illicit cash seized by the petitioners,” the court added.”During a 13-hour search at Soren's Delhi residence on January 29 and 30, the Enforcement Directorate (ED) reported seizing Rs 36 lakh, an SUV car, and numerous "incriminating" documents related to a money laundering investigation tied to an alleged land deal in Jharkhand.Amit Kumar Das, representing the Enforcement Directorate (ED) officials, suggested that a notice be issued to Soren at his current address as it's likely he no longer resides at the address mentioned in the case title of this Cr.M.P. Furthermore, Soren is currently in judicial custody. To support this argument, Das provided a copy of the order-sheet dated 02.02.2024 from the ECIR Case presided over by the A.J.C.-1st-cum-Special Judge, Under PMLA, Ranchi.In response, the court instructed the ED officials, “to file requisites for service of notice upon the opposite party No.2 by registered post with A/D as well as under process of the court within two days failing which; this Cr.M.P. shall stand dismissed without further reference to the Bench.”The counsel further argued that...

Jharkhand High Court Grants Relief To 4 ED Officials In Hemant Soren's FIR Under SC/ST Act; State Directed To Not Take Any Coercive Measures

Bhavya Singh

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