Money laundering probe against Soren: ED summons Cong MP from Jharkhand Dhiraj Sahu

The Enforcement Directorate has summoned Congress Rajya Sabha MP from Jharkhand Dhiraj Prasad Sahu for questioning in a money laundering case in which the central agency arrested former chief minister Hemant Soren, official sources said Thursday.

Sahu, 64, was in the news after the Income-tax department in December recovered Rs 351.8 crore cash, an all-time high seizure, during raids against Odisha-based Boudh Distillery Pvt. Ltd. (BDPL), promoted by the family of the Congress legislator.

Sources said the ED wants to question and record Sahu’s statement in connection with his purported links with Soren and a BMW SUV that was seized by the agency from the JMM leader’s house in Delhi sometime back.

The agency raided a premise in Kardarpur village in Gurugram on Wednesday on whose address this Haryana number plate bearing SUV was registered, the sources said. Two locations in Kolkata were also searched in the same case on Wednesday.

The ED suspects this vehicle to be allegedly linked to Sahu through some ”benami” way.

The 48-year-old Soren was arrested by the ED on January 31 on money laundering charges linked to an alleged illegal land acquisition and possession case. Soren resigned as the Jharkhand CM before he was formally arrested that day. He is in the ED custody at present.