ED raids J'khand FM Rameshwar Oroan's son, others in liquor case

RANCHI: The Enforcement Directorate on Wednesday conducted multiple searches at premises linked to Jharkhand Finance Minister Rameshwar Oroan's son Rohit Oraon and some others as part of a money laundering investigation linked to an alleged liquor scam in the state, official sources said.

About 34 premises in state capital Ranchi, Dumka, Deoghar and Godda districts are being covered by the officials of the central probe agency along with a security cover of the CRPF.

The premises of the senior Oraon are being covered as the father and the son live at the same location. Business and residential premises of some liquor businessmen are also being covered, they said.

Rameshwar Oraon, 76, represents the Lohardaga (ST) assembly seat of the state that he won on a Congress ticket. He holds the charge of finance, planning and commercial tax in the Jharkhand cabinet led by Chief Minister Hemant Soren.

Rameshwar Oraon has earlier served as a Union cabinet minister too under the then prime minister Manmohan Singh and is a retired Indian Police Service (IPS) officer of the 1972 batch.

The current investigation is being conducted under the provisions of the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA), the sources said.