Shibu Soren
By Our Special Correspondent
New Delhi, February 20: Delhi High Court has rejected former Jharkhand Chief Minister Shibu Soren’s petition for stay on Lokpal’s probe in the ongoing Disproportionate case (DA). The High Court had earlier reserved the verdict.
The petition of Jharkhand Mukti Morcha (JMM) chief Shibu Soren, who is facing Lokpal investigation in the disproportionate income case, was heard in the Delhi High Court on Tuesday. After hearing on Soren’s petition challenging the decision of the single bench of the High Court, the bench of Justice Rekha Palli and Justice Sudhir Kumar Jain had reserved the decision and said that the order will be uploaded by Tuesday evening or Wednesday.
Senior advocate Kapil Sibal, appearing on behalf of Soren, sought a stay on the action of Lokpal, saying that this matter is politically motivated and there is no basis for investigation. On this, the bench said that prima facie it does not agree with the petitioner’s argument. The court said that the final decision will be given after considering all the documents.
Solicitor General Tushar Mehta appeared on behalf of Lokpal. He argued that there is sufficient basis to prosecute Shibu Soren. It is noteworthy that in January, the single bench of Subramaniam Prasad had refused to interfere in the Lokpal case. It had said that it is for the Lokpal to decide whether there is enough evidence to proceed with the investigation in this case or not.
Lokpal law has been made only to investigate the cases related to corruption by public representatives. The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) MP Nishikant Dubey had filed a complaint against Shibu Soren and other family members before the Lokpal in August 2020. He had accused Soren and his family members of acquiring assets beyond their known sources of income.
On the basis of the complaint of Dubey, who is a Lok Sabha MP from Godda in Jharkhand, the Lokpal had ordered the CBI to conduct a preliminary investigation. It may also be recalled that Shibu Soren had quit the post of the chief minister after facing several cases. His son Hemant Soren, who had been serving as the chief minister of Jharkhand, also had to quit after the Enforcement Directorate arrested him in the office for profit and DA cases.
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