Soren asks ED to record his statement in money laundering case in his office

Ranchi: Jharkhand Chief Minister Hemant Soren told the Enforcement Directorate (ED) that it can record his statement in a money laundering case at his secretariat on January 20, sources said on Monday night.

The ED had on Saturday sent him a letter, asking him to be available for questioning in the case between January 16 and January 20, they added.

The ED sent the letter after Soren skipped seven summons of the agency.

A person from the Chief Minister's Office (CMO) submitted Soren's reply to the letter, informing that he would be available to record his statement in the case on January 20, to the ED's office in Ranchi.

The investigation pertains to a 'huge racket of illegal change of ownership of land by the mafia' in Jharkhand, according to the ED.

The agency has so far arrested 14 people in the case, including 2011-batch IAS officer Chhavi Ranjan who has served as the director of the state Social Welfare Department and deputy commissioner of Ranchi.

State Congress working president Bandhu Tirkey said the tribal community was angry with the way a tribal CM was being targetted by the central agency.

"In every 12 years, the tribal community goes hunting. If they become angry, they don't see ED or CBI," he told reporters.