Hemant Soren In Trouble Ahead Of Jharkhand Polls, As IT Dept Conducts Raids Against Advisor

Ahead of the Jharkhand elections, the Income Tax Department has launched raids at 16-17 locations of Sunil Srivastava, Hemant Soren's advisor, and his associates in Ranchi and Jamshedpur.

Hemant Soren earlier said that raids against his ministers and associates were politically motivated.

Source : PTI Images

Troubles for Jharkhand Chief Minister Hemant Soren continue to mount ahead of the upcoming assembly elections. In the latest development in the state, the Income Tax Department conducted raids against Sunil Srivastava, personal advisor to Hemant Soren, and several individuals connected to him. Reports indicate that raids were conducted at 16-17 locations linked to Srivastava, including the homes of his family members and close associates.

The raids are currently underway at various locations, with seven sites in Ranchi and nine in Jamshedpur, including the premises of Jamshedpur-based Anjania Steel and other related establishments. Additional details on the investigation are awaited.

VIDEO | IT raids at the residence of Sunil Srivastav, a close aide of Jharkhand CM Hemant Soren, in Ashok Nagar, Ranchi.

(Full video available on PTI Videos - https://t.co/n147TvrpG7) pic.twitter.com/wgyi1V6d5i

— Press Trust of India (@PTI_News) November 9, 2024

According to sources, the Income Tax Department launched the raids over tax evasion allegations. Information received by the department indicated that Srivastava had been involved in certain discrepancies related to tax payments, prompting the department to take action.

#WATCH | Jharkhand: Raid by a central agency underway at the residence of Sunil Srivastava, personal secretary of CM Hemant Soren, in Ranchi

More details awaited. pic.twitter.com/Vd5bNiRPoB

— ANI (@ANI) November 9, 2024

Congress Reacts To Raids Against Hemant Soren Aide

Reacting to the Income Tax Department raids against Srivastava, Jharkhand Mukti Morcha's INDIA partner Congress said central agencies were BJP's way to find a footing in the state. "This is nothing new for Jharkhand. IT raids are being carried out on opposition leaders and their personal staff continuously in the state. BJP is now only trying to find its footing through IT and ED raids. The people here have already rejected them [BJP]. With such action, they are just attempting to create pressure on opposition leaders," Congress leader Rakesh Sinha said.

Previous Raids IT, ED Raids In Jharkhand

On October 26, the Income Tax Department had conducted searches in Ranchi, Jamshedpur, Giridih, and Kolkata during the state assembly elections, targeting financial transactions routed through the hawala system. These raids led to the seizure of documents related to unaccounted assets and investments worth approximately Rs 150 crore from suspected hawala operators.

Earlier, on October 14, the Enforcement Directorate (ED) conducted raids on properties connected to Mithilesh Thakur, a Cabinet minister in the Hemant Soren government, over alleged irregularities in projects under the Jal Jeevan Mission. The ED carried out searches across 20 locations, including the premises of Thakur's brother Vinay Thakur, his private secretary Harendra Singh, and several departmental engineers.

Following the raids, Chief Minister Hemant Soren said that the timing of these investigations was not unexpected. He alleged that these actions were politically motivated and taken at the behest of opposition members as the elections approached.

(With inputs from Chandan Sinha, ABP News.)