VIJAY DEO JHA
Ranchi, Dec 5: Sahibganj police gave a clean chit to minister Alamgir Alam and Pankaj Mishra in the Barharwa toll plaza case within 24 hours the businessman Shambhu Nandan lodged an FIR against them.
DSP Pramod Mishra who was supervising the investigation gave a clean chit to minister Pankaj Mishra without any preliminary investigation and digital evidence. Pramod Mishra was posted as the DSP of Barharwa and his name also surfaced in the ASI Rupa Tirkey death case.
This was disclosed during the questioning of investigating officer and Jharkhand police ASI Sarfuddin Khan by the Enforcement Directorate (ED) on Monday at the zonal office of the ED in Ranchi. Sarfuddin Khan is also learnt to have told the police that it was the decision of his seniors to drop the investigation against Pankaj Mishra and Alamgir Alam.
“The FIR was lodged on June 22, 2020, at Barharwa police station. The case was supervised the next day and the concerned DSP gave a clean chit to the minister and Pankaj Mishra the very next day. It seems no investigation was done. The statement of the complainant and evidence produced by him was not examined and relied upon,” well-placed sources said. Possibility can’t be denied that ED would summon Pramod Mishra.
Barharwa toll plaza case lodged in Sahibganj district is among the cases which the ED is investigating during the course of the illegal stone mining scam. But it is the most important case since it is the basis of the ECIR of the agency in the illegal mining case. Pankaj Mishra is the MLA representative of Jharkhand Chief Minister Hemant Soren.
Notably, Pankaj Mishra currently under judicial custody has lodged a complaint against ED assistant director and investigating officer Deovrata Jha for suppressing the facts of this case before the court. Pankaj Mishra claimed that he was given a clean chit by the police in this case. Hence, no scheduled offence was involved. But despite this, the ED arrested and charge-sheeted him, claimed Pankaj Mishra.
Pakur-based businessman Shambhu Nandan lodged an FIR at Barharwa police station against Alamgir Alam, Pankaj Mishra and others under section 147 (rioting), 149 (member of the unlawful assembly), 341 (wrongful restraint), 342 (wrongful confinement), 323 (voluntarily causing hurt), 379 (to commit theft), 120 B (criminal conspiracy), 504 (Intentional insult) and 506 (criminal intimidation) of the IPC.
The controversy was related to the auction of the Barharwa toll plaza where Shambhu Nandan was one of the participants. It is alleged that the minister wanted to auction in favour of his brother. Hence, Pankaj Mishra called and threatened Shambhu Nandan not to participate in the auction. Pankaj Mishra used the mobile phone of the minister to call Shambhu Nandan. When the businessman refused and went to participate in the auction, he was assaulted by goons and police had even tried to physically prevent him from participating in the auction.
