Special court reserves order in Hemant Soren case; ex-CM to be in one-day judicial custody
Ranchi, Feb 1: The special PMLA court here sent former Jharkhand chief minister Hemant Soren, arrested by the Enforcement Directorate (ED) in a money laundering case, to judicial custody for a day, lawyers said.
The ED sought 10 days remand for Soren. The court reserved its order for Friday.
The JMM executive president has been sent to judicial custody for a day, lawyers said.
Advocate General Rajeev Ranjan, who appeared for Soren, said outside the court that the JMM leader was sent to judicial custody till an order was passed.
"The entire case is driven by wrong intentions. This is a conspiracy to topple the government. There is no evidence in the entire proceedings against the former chief minister. His arrest was made when proceedings were on to record his statement, which is illegal," he said.
Soren was arrested on Wednesday night after a seven-hour grilling by the ED in a money laundering case linked to an alleged land scam. He resigned as the chief minister before that.
The JMM leader was taken to the Birsa Munda Birsa Munda Central Jail here.
As the ex-chief minister was brought outside the court building on the way to the jail, his supporters raised slogans like "Hemant Soren Zindabad".
The JMM leader greeted them in response.
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India describes attack on Fujairah 'unacceptable'
New Delhi (PTI): India on Tuesday described the wounding of three Indians in an attack on the United Arab Emirates' port city of Fujairah as "unacceptable" and pressed for an immediate cessation of hostilities targeting innocent civilians.
New Delhi's reaction came a day after the Indians were injured after a drone attack caused a fire at a major oil industry zone in Fujairah. The UAE had accused Iran of carrying out the strike.
"The attack on Fujairah that resulted in injury to three Indian nationals is unacceptable," External Affairs Ministry spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal said.
"We call for immediate cessation of these hostilities and the targeting of civilian infrastructure and innocent civilians," the spokesperson said.
Jaiswal said India continued to stand for dialogue and diplomacy to deal with the situation so that peace and stability could be restored across West Asia.
"We also call for free and unimpeded navigation and commerce through the Strait of Hormuz in keeping with international law. India stands ready to support all efforts for a peaceful resolution of issues," he said.
The attack on Fujairah city came as the ceasefire between the US and Iran came under strain in the Strait of Hormuz.
The Strait of Hormuz, through which roughly one-fifth of the world's oil and gas pass, remains a major sticking point in the talks. Shipping through the narrow Gulf waterway has been severely disrupted by the conflict, triggering a sharp increase in oil prices and energy shortages in several countries.
The UAE's defence ministry on Monday said its air defence systems engaged 12 ballistic missiles, three cruise missiles and four drones launched from Iran.
The ministry affirmed that it "remains fully prepared and ready to deal with any threats and will firmly confront anything that aims to undermine the security of the country."
