From Our Bureau
NEW DELHI: The Supreme Court on Wednesday stayed proceedings before the Jharkhand High Court on PILs seeking probe against Jharkhand Chief Minister Hemant Soren for alleged questionable grant of mining leases to himself and to some shell companies operated by his family members and associates.
A bench comprising Chief Justice designate, Justice Uday Umesh Lalit, Justice S. Ravindra Bhat and Justice Sudhanshu Dhulia reserved order on a plea by the Jharkhand government and Chief Minister Soren, challenging the High Court’s order upholding the maintainability of the PILs seeking probe against the Chief Minister.
It has been alleged that Soren was involved in money laundering through shell companies and obtaining a mining lease while he was in power.
“Order reserved. Since the Court is seized of the matter, the High Court shall not proceed further with writ petitions,” the top court said. It also asked the Jharkhand government to provide security to the PIL petitioner Shiv Shankar Sharma and his family which was assured by Senior lawyer Kapil Sibal appearing for the Jharkhand governmen.
Sibal in the course of the daylong hearing told the court that the Directorate of Enforcement has given some material to the High Court in a sealed cover. The High court after perusing the material ordered its resealing. He said that there was no incriminating evidence against the Chief Minister Soren.
Pointing to the absence of a predicate offence – a requirement for the Directorate of Enforcement to step in the case – Sibal told the court that the PIL petitioner did not file a First Information Report (FIR) and directly approached the High Court.
Referring to 0.88 acres of land – that is at the core of the allegations against the Chief Minister Soren – Justice Lalit said, “We are only concerned with this. The Chief Minister already had 0.88 acres of land before he assumed office. It’s not as if the office was misused to amass wealth.”
Additional Solicitor General S.V. Raju, appearing for the ED, opposed the plea and argued that any petition which shows corruption cannot be thrown out on technicalities and credentials of the petitioner become irrelevant when there is an offence. He urged the court to see the material submitted by the Directorate of Enforcement to the High Court in the sealed cover.
However, the court said that was at a later stage and asked what was the material before the High court to be satisfied about the maintainability of the PIL against the chief Minister,
The top court was hearing a plea of Jharkhand government and Soren challenging the June 3, 2022, order of the High Court admitting the PILs filed by one Shiv Shankar Sharma demanding probe against the Chief Minister and his family for grant of mining leases, alleged money laundering by shell companies linked to him and MNREGA contracts of 2010.
