Raghubar Das’ tell-all press conference: CM Soren and his shady deals exposed

The dream run of the Soren Family seems to have come to a grinding halt. The Soren Empire has been caught in its own cobweb of alleged corruption, shoddy business deals and misuse of power. CM Soren may soon lose his throne due to his arrogance, greed and willful ignorance of the law. Opposition leader, Raghubar Das is incessantly exposing him and ensuring that the mineral-rich state is freed from the clutches of the infamous ruling Soren Family.

Raghubar Das: Emerging as the crusader against Corruption and other illegalities of his Successor

On 25th April, Former CM and BJP Vice-President Raghubar Das held a press conference and levelled multiple charges against the incumbent CM and his family. He accused the CM of corruption, misuse of power, cheating tribals and succumbing to the pressure of missionaries and radical Muslims. He alleged Hemant Soren, leader of Jharkhand Mukti Morcha and the incumbent CM, misused his portfolios to dole out Adivasi lands to his wife, local representative Pankaj Mishra and Soren’s media advisor Pintu Prasad.

He claimed that the CM misused his power as the Minister of Industries and allotted 11 acres of tribal land to Sohrai Live, a firm owned by his wife Kalpana Soren. Evidently, the land allotted to Mrs Soren is for a meat-processing plant inside an industrial area in rural Ranchi. Another 11 acres of land in Sahibganj was allotted to Shivshakti Enterprises, owned by Abhishek Prasad alias Pintu. Six acres were allotted to a company named Mahakal Stone Works in Sahibganj. The company belongs to Pankaj Mishra, CM’s local representative.

Former CM Das said, “This government came to power promising to save ‘jal, jungle and jameen’ (forest, water and land), which are both pride and identity of the tribals. However, it is doing exactly the opposite and the incumbent government is centred to serve only one family. (Ek Parivar Ka, Ek Parivar Ke Dwara, Ek Parivar Ke Liye Shashan).”

Undemocratic and Appeasement Politics of CM Soren

Das also accused CM Soren of trampling the democratic values and running government only for his family’s gains. He said that the CM had succumbed to missionaries and removed the religion column from the caste certificate. He also accused the dispensation of ignoring the allurement of innocent girls by radical Muslims for marriage. Das further added that under the Soren administration, Islamists are grabbing the tribal lands by luring their girls for love jihad.

He had previously enlightened Governor Ramesh Bais of the alleged case of ‘office of profit’ against CM Soren. He had accused the CM of allotting a mining lease to himself. To validate these accusations, the Governor had asked for the Election Commission’s opinion on this matter. Currently, Chief Secretary Sukhdeo Singh has been tasked with the responsibility of appraising the EC of the facts of this case. The matter is also subjudice in the Jharkhand High Court where the State’s Advocate General had accepted the mining lease allotment by CM to himself as a “mistake”.

Read More: Raghubar Das has almost scalped Hemant Soren

Hemant Soren’s legal troubles do not end here. In a separate legal case, he and his brother Basant Soren are facing charges of corruption, money laundering and having dis-proportionate assets. Under the order of the Jharkhand High Court, the Enforcement Directorate (ED) and Registrar of Companies are probing the wealth of CM, his family and close aides.

With so many legalities mounted because of his alleged misdeeds, the fractured mandate that his government received in the assembly election could fall apart. The rifts which were running inside the coalition are expected to be exacerbated by a recent meeting between insider Sita Soren and the Governor of Jharkhand.

Even though the state is full of minerals, corruption at the top level has always kept the state in a dilapidated condition. The next few weeks will decide the fate of the CM and henceforth the state of Jharkhand. As the saying goes, “you reap what you sow”. If any of the allegations are found to be true, the Jharkhand CM may even face a jail term and the state may be unshackled from the grasp of the Soren family.