Jharkhand Coal Probe: Marandi Cries Foul Over ‘Fabricated Crimes’

A significant accusation has been made by Babulal Marandi, the state BJP chief and Leader of Opposition, claiming that the Jharkhand government is actively creating new criminal incidents to conceal its failure to address existing ones. Marandi highlighted that the state’s administration and its associated systems have reportedly resorted to manufacturing fresh crimes as a cover-up strategy. The recent Enforcement Directorate (ED) operations targeting the extensive coal mafia network in Dhanbad have unearthed deeply concerning evidence. A particularly alarming development is the alleged directive from certain influential police officers, who are purportedly enriching themselves through the black economy of coal, to eliminate their subordinate operatives. The motive behind this alleged assassination plot is to silence individuals currently undergoing questioning by the ED, thereby preventing any incriminating information from reaching the investigators. Marandi alluded to a history within the state of ‘encounter killings’ used to dispose of evidence rather than apprehend criminals. He strongly advised the ED to maintain heightened alertness, stating that in Jharkhand, the reality is that those who suppress facts often wield more power than those who reveal them. The union of state power, institutional systems, and organized crime, he warned, renders the perversion of justice a simple formality.