Ranchi, Oct 1 The Jharkhand High Court on Thursday imposed a cost of Rs 10,000 on Chief Minister Hemant Soren after his counsel sought an adjournment in ED officers' plea, challenging criminal proceedings against them in a case linked to their 2024 search at his Delhi residence.
An FIR was filed on January 31, 2024, at the SC/ST Police Station in Ranchi based on Soren's complaint following Enforcement Directorate proceedings against him in connection with a money-laundering case.
The federal probe agency had searched Soren's residence in Delhi, following which he accused its officers of harassment and alleged that he was being targeted because he belonged to a tribal community.
The officers subsequently challenged a notice issued by the police station, requiring them to appear before the investigating officer of the case in connection with the FIR.
Hearing the petition filed by ED officers Kapil Raj, Deovrat Jha, Anupam Kumar and Aman Patel, the court had issued notices to Soren and the state government on March 4, 2024, seeking their response. It had also directed that no coercive steps should be taken against the ED officers during the pendency of the matter.
During Thursday's hearing, Soren's counsel sought an adjournment.
At this, the high court noted that adjournments had been sought several times earlier too and directed Soren to pay Rs 10,000 to the Jharkhand State Legal Services Authority.
The court then listed the matter for further hearing on November 2.
