New Delhi, Sep 15 (UNI) The Supreme Court on Friday adjourned to September 18 Jharkhand Chief Minister Hemant Soren’s plea against the Enforcement Directorate (ED) summons to him in a money laundering case.
Soren’s advocate urged a bench of Justices Aniruddha Bose and Bela M Trivedi to adjourn the matter for Monday.
Soren has filed a petition in the Supreme Court challenging summons issued to him, and argued that the case is a clear “abuse of law” by the Central Government and “misuse of the central agencies” to destabilise the democratically elected government led by him.
ED had asked Soren to join its investigation in the alleged money laundering case on August 24. However, he did not appear before ED on that day.
Soren was earlier summoned by the ED in mid-August in connection with an alleged land scam case.
However, Soren did not join the central agency probe stating that he was busy with the preparation for the Independence Day celebrations in the state.
He was again asked to appear on August 24 and September 9 but he did not appear before the probe agency.
In his plea, Soren urged the top court to declare Section 50 and Section 63 of the Prevention of Money Laundering Act, 2002 as ultra vires to the Constitution of India and to issue appropriate direction to declare the summons against him as illegal and null and void.
It said issuance of summons is actuated by malice and that “false allegation” has been levelled against the petitioner “with the sole motive to create political uncertainty and unrest in the state”.
The petition said ED earlier also sought to link the petitioner with the alleged illegal mining of stone chips in Jharkhand and summons were issued.
The Chief Minister had asked the probe agency to withdraw the summon against him or he will take legal action.
He alleged that ED has summoned him on August 14, on the instructions of its political masters.
“You and your political masters are fully aware that being the Chief Minister of the state of Jharkhand, the undersigned is scheduled to hoist the national flag on the occasion of the 77th Independence Day of the Republic of India on August 15,,” Soren wrote in his letter to the ED..
