Ranchi | Jharkhand chief minister Champai Soren resigned on Wednesday and Hemant Soren, who is out on bail in a money laundering case, staked claim to form the government, hours after leaders of the JMM-led alliance in the state unanimously elected him as the legislature party leader.
Champai Soren, who had taken oath as the 12th chief minister of Jharkhand on February 2 after Hemant Soren's arrest, met Governor CP Radhakrishnan at Raj Bhavan and tendered his resignation in the presence of the JMM executive president, capping a day-long drama full of speculations.
Hemant Soren staked claim to form the government and the swearing-in ceremony is likely to be held soon. If sworn in, Hemant Soren will be the 13th chief minister of Jharkhand, which was carved out of Bihar on November 15, 2000.
"I have resigned as per the decision of the JMM-led alliance. Our alliance is strong," Champai Soren said after coming out of Raj Bhavan.
"All know what had happened with Hemant Soren Ji... I was given the responsibility by the coalition partners. Now, the alliance has decided in favour of Hemant Soren Ji," he said.
Hemant Soren told the media all formalities to form the government are complete.
"Everything will be disclosed soon," the JMM executive president said when asked about the swearing-in.
Earlier, leaders and MLAs of the alliance during a meeting at Champai Soren's residence here unanimously decided to elect Hemant Soren as the JMM legislature party leader, party sources said.
"A decision was taken in the meeting to make Hemant Soren as the Chief Minister of the state again," a party source told PTI.
Congress's Jharkhand in-charge Ghulam Ahmad Mir and its state president Rajesh Thakur also attended the meeting, besides Hemant Soren's brother Basant and wife Kalpana.
Hemant Soren, son of JMM supremo Shibu Soren was released from jail on June 28 after nearly five months, after the high court granted him bail in a money laundering case linked to an alleged land scam. He had resigned as the CM shortly before his arrest on January 31 by the ED.
Meanwhile, official sources in New Delhi said the Enforcement Directorate is soon expected to approach the Supreme Court with an SLP against the Jharkhand High Court order that granted bail to Hemant Soren in a money laundering case.
The ED is likely to challenge the June 28 order passed by the single bench of Justice Rongon Mukhopadhyay stating that the court's belief that the petitioner (Soren) is "not guilty" was erroneous and the accused does not satisfy the twin conditions as required under section 45 of the PMLA, sources said.
Meanwhile, in a post on X, BJP MP Nishkant Dubey said, "The Champai Soren era is over in Jharkhand. In the family-oriented party, people outside the family have no political future. I wish the chief minister drew inspiration from Bhagwan Birsa Munda and stood up against the corrupt Hemant Soren ji."
Jharkhand BJP president Babulal Marandi asserted that the tribals outside Shibu Soren’s family are only temporary faces in JMM. He also alleged that the family believes in using people as per their needs and requirements.
Marandi alleged that the real face of JMM, which had talked about rising above nepotism and electing a new chief minister five months ago, has once again been exposed.
He claimed that the "tiger of Kolhan", as Champai Soren is known in political circles, has been turned into a mouse today.
While Jharkhand can have 12 ministers, the state Cabinet at present has a strength of 10.
After the Lok Sabha elections, the strength of the JMM-led alliance in the state was reduced to 45 MLAs – JMM-27, Congress-17 and RJD-1.
Two JMM MLAs, Nalin Soren and Joba Majhi, are now parliamentarians, while Jama legislator Sita Soren resigned to contest the general elections on a BJP ticket.
The JMM expelled two more legislators – Bishunpur MLA Chamra Linda and Boriyo MLA Lobin Hembrom – from the party.
Likewise, the BJP's strength in the assembly has reduced to 24, as two of its MLAs – Dhulu Mahto (Baghmara) and Manish Jaiswal (Hazaribag) – are now MPs. The saffron party has expelled Mandu MLA Jaiprakash Bhai Patel after he joined the Congress to contest the polls.
The current strength of the 81-member Jharkhand assembly is 76.
New Delhi | The Enforcement Directorate (ED) is expected to approach the Supreme Court soon with a special leave petition (SLP) against a recent Jharkhand High Court order that granted bail to former chief minister and JMM leader Hemant Soren in a money-laundering case, official sources said on Wednesday.
The ED is likely to challenge the June 28 order passed by a bench of Justice Rongon Mukhopadhyay, stating that the court's belief that Soren is "not guilty" is erroneous and the accused does not satisfy the twin conditions stipulated by section 45 of the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA).
The high court had said there was "reason to believe" that Soren was not guilty of the offence as alleged by the ED and there was no likelihood of the petitioner committing a similar offence.
Section 45 of the PMLA stipulates that bail can be given to a money-laundering accused if two conditions are met -- if the court is prima facie satisfied that the accused did not commit the offence and that he is unlikely to commit any offence while on bail.
The federal agency is expected to move the apex court with these grounds mentioned in its SLP.
The ED's legal team had, the day the high court granted the relief to Soren, requested the court for a stay on the implementation of the bail order for 48 hours, so that it could move the Supreme Court. However, the high court had rejected the plea.
On Wednesday, Soren staked a claim to form the government as the next chief minister of Jharkhand and his party colleague, Champai Soren, resigned from the top post.
Soren (48), the executive president of the Jharkhand Mukti Morcha (JMM), was arrested by the ED on January 31 from the Jharkhand Raj Bhavan in Ranchi, just after he resigned as the chief minister.
The money-laundering case against Soren pertains to his "illegally" acquiring an 8.86-acre land in Ranchi with the help of state government officials and others.
A chargesheet was filed by the ED against Soren and some others on March 30 before a special PMLA court in Ranchi.
The ED has also attached the Ranchi land and requested the court for its confiscation.
The money-laundering investigation stems from multiple FIRs lodged by the Jharkhand Police in land "scam" cases against several people, including state government officials.
The prime accused in the case is former revenue department sub-inspector Bhanu Pratap Prasad, also a 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 ED had said in a statement.
"A racket of land mafia is active in Jharkhand, which used to forge land records in Ranchi," the agency has claimed.
