Jharkhand’s state government is under fire from opposition leader Babulal Marandi, who has accused it of creating entirely new criminal incidents to distract from and conceal existing crimes. Marandi stated that the government and the broader system in Jharkhand have developed a strategy of manufacturing new offenses to cover up their failures. Recent Enforcement Directorate (ED) actions within the powerful coal syndicate of Dhanbad have apparently revealed compelling evidence of this alleged deception. The most alarming aspect is the reported instruction from certain senior police officials, allegedly benefiting from illegal coal revenues, to ‘permanently neutralize’ some of the coal mafia’s ground operatives. This is suspected to be a ploy to prevent witnesses from cooperating with the ED and exposing the full scale of the operation. The practice of orchestrating ‘encounter killings’ to eliminate evidence has a precedent in Jharkhand. The state has prior experience with a Director General of Police who faced allegations of arranging contract killings, allegedly setting new records for corruption, with even ruling party insiders reportedly acknowledging these accusations. The ED must operate with extreme vigilance. In Jharkhand’s current climate, those who hide the truth wield more influence than those who reveal it. When state power, bureaucratic systems, and criminal elements are interlinked, the subversion of justice becomes almost inevitable.
