Jharkhand High Court denies interim bail to Hemant Soren but allows him to attend uncle's funeral

The Jharkhand High Court on Friday dismissed a provisional bail application filed by jailed former Chief Minister Hemant Soren but allowed him to attend his uncle's funeral rites [Hemant Soren v. Directorate of Enforcement]..Soren, who has been booked in a money laundering case, had sought provisional bail to perform the funeral rites for his uncle, Raja Ram Soren. His counsel argued that his uncle did not have any sons and that Soren, being the eldest nephew, has a duty to perform the funeral rites. .However, Justice Rongon Mukhopadhyay, observed that the grant of bail in money laundering cases can only be in exceptional circumstances. No such exceptional circumstance was made out in Soren's case to allow his interim release from jail, the judge opined. The Court also observed that Soren's petition did not mention that there were no other male members to conduct the funeral rites. Rather, it was an argument made by his counsel during the hearing. This was also factored in by the High Court when it rejected Soren's provisional bail application. "The last rites of the uncle of the petitioner (Soren) is to be performed on 06.05.2024 and no statement has been made in the petition that there are no other male members in the family to perform the customary obligations as well as the last rites of the uncle of the petitioner. No exceptional circumstance has been highlighted to accede to the prayer of the petitioner made in this application. On such consideration therefore, I am not inclined to grant provisional bail to the petitioner as prayed for and consequently this application stands dismissed," the May 3 order stated. .However, the Court allowed Soren to attend the May 6 funeral under police custody. The Court also directed Soren not to give public speeches or interact with the media or any witness while attending the funeral. The Court further directed the State administration to ensure maintenance of law and order at the funeral venue. "Taking a cue from the observation made in the case of 'Athar Pervez Vs. State' (supra) to meet the ends of justice it would suffice that the petitioner be permitted to attend the last rites of his uncle scheduled to be held on 06.05.2024 under police custody, subject to the condition that the petitioner shall not indulge himself in any public speeches and shall have no interaction with any media personnel or any witness of this case. The administration shall ensure that these conditions are strictly complied with. It shall also ensure maintenance of law and order at the venue in question," the Court ordered. .Advocates Jitendra S Singh, Deepankar, Piyush Chitresh and Shray Mishra represented Hemant Soren. Advocates Zohib Hussain, Amit Kumar Das, Saurav Kumar and Rishabh Dubey represented the Enforcement Directorate (ED)Soren had stepped down as Chief Minister of Jharkhand on January 31 in the wake of his arrest by the ED in a money laundering case related to the “illegal change of ownership of land by the mafia” in the State.Soren has denied the allegations of money laundering. In a video released soon before he was taken into custody, he claimed he was being arrested on the basis of “fake papers” as a part of a conspiracy. Earlier today, a Division Bench of the High Court dismissed a plea filed by Soren challenging his arrest by the ED. .[Read Order]