Hemant Soren appeared before the PMLA court via video conferencing (File)
A special PMLA court on Thursday extended the judicial custody of former Jharkhand chief minister Hemant Soren till April 4 in connection with a money laundering case related to an alleged land scam, an official said.
Hemant Soren, the executive president of the ruling Jharkhand Mukti Morcha (JMM), was in judicial custody until March 21.
Hemant Soren appeared before the special Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA) court via video conferencing, officials said.
Previously, on February 15, the PMLA court had remanded him to judicial custody until February 22, which was later extended until March 21.
Following his arrest by the Enforcement Directorate (ED) on January 31, shortly after his resignation as chief minister, Soren has been held in the Birsa Munda Central Jail in Hotwar, Ranchi.
Initially, the court granted the ED five days of custody for Hemant Soren, which was later extended twice, totaling seven days. His arrest followed a seven-hour interrogation by the central agency in connection with the money laundering case.
In response to her husband's incarceration, Kalpana Soren, who recently joined the JMM, accused the opposition of conspiring against him.
She expressed confidence that the people of the state would not yield and would deliver a resounding political response through their votes in the future.
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