State Bureau, Ranchi: Chief Electoral Officer K. Ravi Kumar stated that there was negligence on the part of police officers in the matter of detaining Mandal Murmu, a proposer for Chief Minister and Jharkhand Mukti Morcha candidate Hemant Soren from the Barhait Assembly constituency, along with others in Dumri, Giridih district. Following a report by the Commissioner of North Chotanagpur Division, Pawan Kumar, this information has been conveyed to the Election Commission. The commission will now initiate action against the responsible officials as per its directives.
The Chief Electoral Officer mentioned that a report was sought from the Commissioner of North Chotanagpur regarding this matter. The report confirmed that there was no videography conducted during the vehicle inspection. The Election Commission has issued clear instructions that the process of vehicle checks during elections must be recorded for transparency. This, however, did not happen in this instance.
No illegal items, such as cash, drugs, alcohol, or other intoxicants, were found in the vehicle. Even in the absence of any illicit material, detaining the individuals was wrong. This action violates the provisions of the Representation of the People Act, the Election Commission’s guidelines, and infringes on the individuals’ right to freedom.
He said that the complete report, along with the details of the case, has been submitted to the Election Commission, which will take action against the responsible officials. According to the Chief Electoral Officer, the commission has directed that full transparency be maintained in vehicle inspections at checkpoints, with webcasting also arranged for real-time monitoring.
Rejection of Allegations The Chief Electoral Officer dismissed allegations of pressure exerted on the police administration by him and the state’s police nodal officer regarding the release of Mandal Murmu from the police station. He said that public institutions are subject to criticism, which leads to improvement. Since a complaint has been made to the commission, it will decide on the matter. He denied having received any request for a report from the commission on this matter.
What is the Case? Mandal Murmu, a descendant of Sidho Kanhu, was nominated as a candidate by Hemant Soren. During Murmu’s journey from Godda to Ranchi, the police stopped his vehicle in Dumri and took him to Saraiyahat police station for questioning. Some others were with him. However, the police released him after the BJP lodged a complaint.
It is reported that Murmu was traveling to Ranchi to meet BJP leaders at the request of MP Nishikant Dubey. Meanwhile, the Jharkhand Mukti Morcha (JMM) lodged a complaint with the Election Commission, alleging pressure on the police administration by the Chief Electoral Officer, the state’s police nodal officer AV Homkar, and ADG Operations Sanjay Anand Latkar.
