ED attaches Rs 31-cr worth Ranchi land 'belonging' to Soren, court takes cognisance of charge sheet
Ranchi (PTI): The Enforcement Directorate (ED) has attached 8.86 acres of land in Ranchi allegedly owned by former Jharkhand chief minister Hemant Soren as part of a money laundering investigation against him and his associates, the federal agency said on Thursday.
The ED had filed a charge sheet against the 48-year-old JMM leader and four others -- Bhanu Pratap Prasad, Raj Kumar Pahan, Hilariyas Kachhap and Binod Singh -- on March 30 before a special Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA) court here.
The court took cognisance of the prosecution complaint on Thursday, the ED said in a statement.
The ED requested the court for confiscation of the 8.86-acre plot.
Soren was arrested in this case by the ED in January after he was questioned at his official residence in Ranchi. He resigned as the chief minister shortly before his arrest. He is in judicial custody and currently lodged in the Birsa Munda central jail in Ranchi's Hotwar.
The money laundering investigation stems from multiple FIRs registered by Jharkhand Police in land "scam" cases against several people, including government officials.
The prime accused in the case is Prasad, a former Jharkhand revenue department official and custodian of government records, who is alleged to have "misused" his official position by providing assistance to several people including Soren in their activities linked to illegal occupation, acquisition and possession of proceeds of crime in the form of landed properties, the agency said in its statement.
"A racket of land mafia is active in Jharkhand which used to forge the land records in Ranchi," it claimed.
During the probe, the ED said, it was found that the ownership records of lands had also been "forged" to extend favours to the said land mafia and subsequently, on the basis of forged land records, such land parcels were sold to other persons.
"Original land records of ownerships are either tampered or concealed to facilitate unlawful acquisition, possession and use of such properties," it said.
Prasad, the ED said in its charge sheet, was a member of a syndicate which was involved in acquiring lands by fraudulent means which included tampering with original government registers, falsification of government records and manufacturing fake documents.
The land that is alleged to have been acquired by Soren is about 8.86 acres in size and located at Baragain Anchal, Bariyatu Road in Ranchi.
It was valued at Rs 31,07,02,480 as per urban residential property rate of Rs 3,50,680 per decimal, stated the ED charge sheet, which was accessed by PTI.
The agency said Soren was in the "possession" of this immovable asset since 2010-11 in a "camouflaged and concealed" manner.
It also accused Soren of "misusing his power and influence" to create "parallel and false evidence" since he was issued the first summons for questioning in this case on August 7, 2023 for appearance a week later.
The agency said they have recorded the statement of a person identified as Baijnath Munda and his cousin Shyamlal Pahan who claimed that the land, which Soren is alleged to have taken over, "was originally owned by his ancestors and was forcefully acquired by Shibu Soren (Hemant Soren's father) and Hemant Soren" and their complaint in this regard was not accepted at any police station due to their (Sorens) "high influence".
The ED said the land allegedly "acquired" land was a 'Bhuinhari' property that cannot be transferred or sold to anyone under general situation and 'Mundas' and 'Pahans' were the owners of such land assets.
"Since this 8.86 acre property was vacant and no construction was done on it, Hemant Soren, in connivance with others, got hold over his property illegally by asserting it as 'Bhuinhari' property and the earlier persons having possession of the said land were evicted...," the ED claimed.
The agency claimed Soren and Prasad were "knowingly" a party in the activities connected with acquisition, possession, concealment and use of proceeds of crime as well as projecting the said proceeds of crime (8.86 acres land) as untainted property.
Accused Pahan, Kachhap and Singh "knowingly assisted" Soren in his activities connected with the proceeds of crime.
Soren, in his statement to the ED, denied having any link to the said property and said he had no relation with Prasad.
The ED said during its searches at a residential house "under use and control" of Soren in Delhi on January 29, Rs 36.34 lakh cash, a BMW car and incriminating documents were seized.
It said Soren said in his statement to the agency that he used this car the same day. The agency claimed the former CM purchased it by personally visiting the vehicle showroom.
The ED said it has arrested 16 people in the case including IAS officer and former Ranchi district collector Chhavi Ranjan, Amit Kumar Agarwal and Prem Prakash.
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Putin meets Iran's FM Araghchi, says Russia ready to do its best to help bring peace to West Asia
Moscow (PTI): Iran's Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi on Monday met Russian President Vladimir Putin, who hailed the Iranian people for fighting bravely and heroically for their sovereignty and said Moscow is ready to do its best to help bring peace to West Asia as soon as possible.
Araghchi, who held talks with Omani and Pakistani leadership before arriving in Russia, met Putin in St. Petersburg and thanked him for supporting Iran, state-owned TASS news agency reported.
"Russia is ready to do everything in its power to ensure that peace in the Middle East is achieved as soon as possible," Putin said during his meeting with Araghchi, which was also attended by Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov.
Revealing that he received a message from Iranian Supreme Leader Mojtaba Khamenei last week, Putin asked Araghchi to convey his "gratitude for this message and best wishes for his health and well-being."
He praised the Iranian people for fighting "bravely and heroically" for their sovereignty, Iran's state-run PRESS TV reported.
"We really hope that, based on the courage and desire for independence, the Iranian people, under the guidance of the new leader, will weather this difficult period of trials and peace will come,” Putin said.
He also stressed that Russia “intends to maintain” its strategic relations with Iran.
Araghchi said that the world witnessed Iran’s strength in countering the US during the recent war, and that the Islamic Republic is a "stable and powerful establishment."
"With their courage, the Iranian people succeeded in resisting the US aggression and will be able to endure it,” he said.
He said that it became clear that Iran has “great friends and allies” like Russia, and conveyed “warmest greetings” from Supreme Leader Mojtaba Khamenei and President Masoud Pezeshkian to the Russian leader.
Araghchi said relations between Moscow and Tehran represent a “strategic partnership at the highest level” and will continue to develop "regardless of circumstances."
"We are grateful to you for the solid and strong positions in support of the Islamic Republic of Iran," he said.
Foreign Minister Lavrov said that the talks between President Putin and the Iranian Foreign Minister were "useful and constructive."
Kremlin Spokesman Dmitry Peskov later said that Russia is "ready to provide any good offices, any mediation services that are acceptable to the parties."
"We will be ready to do everything so that ultimately peace ensues, guaranteed peace, and that there is no return to hostilities," Peskov was quoted as saying by TASS.
He was asked how Moscow can assist in future negotiations on the Iranian settlement.
Araghchi arrived in Russia after his whirlwind trip to Islamabad, which, according to him, was “very productive” and involved “good consultations" with Pakistan's Army Chief Field Marshal Asim Munir, amid uncertainty over the second round of peace talks to resolve the war in West Asia.
"We held good consultations with our friends in Pakistan. The trip was successful. We assessed the outcome of our recent (meetings) and discussed in what direction and under what conditions talks can move on,” Araghchi said in a video posted on his Telegram channel upon his arrival in St Petersburg.
Referring to the second round of talks between the US and Iran to resolve the conflict in West Asia, Araghchi said: "Developments have taken place in the negotiations."
"Despite some progress in earlier rounds, the talks failed to reach their objectives due to the Americans' approach, the excessive demands they made, and the wrong approaches they adopted. Therefore, it was necessary to consult with our friends in Pakistan to review the latest situation,” Iran's official news agency IRNA quoted him as saying.
He said that the trip to Pakistan was a good opportunity to review developments related to the US-Israeli war against Iran, expressing confidence that “these consultations and coordination between the two countries will be highly significant.”
Araghchi arrived at St. Petersburg's Pulkovo Airport early Monday, where he was welcomed by Russian officials and Iran’s ambassador to Russia, Kazem Jalali, the report said.
The first round of peace talks between Iran and the US, held on April 11 and 12, failed to bring the desired result for the parties to the conflict.
The Iranian minister arrived in Islamabad for the second time on Sunday after a short visit to Oman, where he held talks with Sultan Haitham bin Tariq al-Said on security in the Strait of Hormuz and diplomatic efforts to end the Iran-US conflict.
After Araghchi left Pakistan for Oman on Saturday, President Donald Trump announced that US negotiators Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner would no longer be going to Islamabad for talks with Iran, contending that Washington held all the cards on the matter.
Trump on Sunday reiterated that the US and Iranian officials can talk by phone for a peace solution to the conflict.
On Tuesday, Trump extended the two-week ceasefire with Iran indefinitely to give Tehran more time to prepare a unified proposal to end the war, just hours before the truce was set to expire.
The war began when the US and Israel jointly attacked Iran on February 28, killing Iranian Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei and several top commanders. The retaliation by the Islamic Republic extended the war to the entire Gulf region.
