VIJAY DEO JHA
Ranchi, Dec 6: The Enforcement Directorate (ED) has summoned the then DSP of Barharwa Pramod Kumar Mishra and he will be questioned on December 12 about how he supervised the Barharwa toll plaza tender case and gave a clean chit to Congress minister Alamgir Alam as well as Pankaj Mishra.
Pankaj Mishra is the MLA representative of Jharkhand CM Hemant Soren and he is currently in jail in the illegal stone mining case. The ED has filed a prosecution complaint against him.
Well placed sources said that in the same case the ED will summon Sahibganj SP Anuranjan Kispotta in the near future.
Notably, the Sahibganj police gave a clean chit to minister Alamgir Alam and Pankaj Mishra in Barharwa toll plaza case within 24 hours the businessman Shambhu Nandan lodged an FIR against them.
DSP Pramod Mishra was supervising the investigation and gave a clean chit to minister and also Pankaj Mishra without any preliminary investigation and digital evidence. Pramod Mishra was posted as DSP of Barharwa and his name had also surfaced in 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. Sarfuddin Khan also said 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. Now it is said that the investigation was completed in 27 minutes. The ED wants to know from Pramod Mishra how he managed such a swift investigation,” well-placed sources said.
The 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 case pertains to the auction of Barharwa toll plaza. Shambhu Nandan was one of the participants. The minister wanted the 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 the police had even tried to physically prevent him from participating in the auction.
