Hemant Soren brought back to ED office after floor test at State Assembly

RANCHI: Former Jharkhand Chief Minister Hemant Soren was brought back to the Enforcement Directorate (ED) after the Champai Soren-led Jharkhand government won the Trust Vote in the State Assembly on Monday.

The newly formed government of Jharkhand, led by Chief Minister Champai Soren, passed the confidence motion in the State Assembly on Monday.

The coalition government won the floor test with a 47:29 majority. The Assembly Speaker Rabindra Nath Mahato asked the members of the House who were in favour and against the motion to stand at their places one by one.

"(A total of) 47 votes have been received in favour of the motion. There were 29 votes against the motion. Thus, this House passes the Trust Vote," the Speaker said before adjourning the House till 11 am on Tuesday.

In the 81-member assembly, the halfway mark for a majority is 41.

The Jharkhand Mukti Morcha with 29 seats, and its ally Congress with 17 were confident of easily sailing through the Trust Vote.

Former Jharkhand Chief Minister, who was arrested by the Directorate of Enforcement in the alleged land scam, Hemant Soren was also present in the Assembly to attend the floor test.

A special court in Ranchi allowed Soren to participate in the trust vote.

Participating in the debate, Hemant Soren, said that his arrest is just an example of the oppression faced by tribals and Dalits in society in multiple ways.

"If you look back at the oppression faced by adivasis, backward, Dalits and minorities, it has been brought forward in multiple ways in different forms. January 31 is an example of this oppression," he said.

Lashing out at the Bharatiya Janata Party, the former Chief Minister said, "I do not understand why the ruling (central) government has so much hatred towards adivasis and Dalits. They don't hesitate to say that we should remain in jungles. If we come out of the jungle their graves will get dirty. They think that we are untouchables."

Jharkhand Chief Minister Champai Soren while setting off the debate on the trust motion said that the Centre is misusing the agencies.

"The one who is ruling the Central government misused agencies. In 2019, Hemant got the mandate. Such a Chief Minister is arrested in a land scam case," the Chief Minister said supporting his predecessor.