Jharkhand’s opposition leader, Babulal Marandi, has accused the state government of a grave offense: manufacturing new crimes to conceal existing ones, particularly concerning the pervasive coal mafia. Marandi asserts that this practice has become ingrained within the state’s governance and enforcement apparatus. Recent ED investigations into the coal black market in Dhanbad have brought to light shocking revelations. The situation has escalated with credible reports suggesting that some top police officers, enriched by the illegal coal trade, have issued ‘targets’ to their ground-level associates within the mafia to permanently eliminate individuals under ED scrutiny. The implication is that these eliminations are planned to prevent those being interrogated from revealing critical information. This tactic echoes a disturbing historical pattern in Jharkhand where ‘evidence encounters’ were used as a guise for criminal suppression. The state has a history of leaders, including a former DGP, facing allegations of contract killings and unprecedented corruption, with even ruling party members condemning such actions. Consequently, the ED must proceed with utmost vigilance. The political and enforcement landscape here favors the suppression of truth, and when power structures align with criminal enterprises, the subversion of justice is tragically inevitable.
