New Delhi: The Chief Minister Hemant Soren-led Jharkhand government on Wednesday instructed officials not to share any documents with the Enforcement Directorate (ED) or the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) and the Income Tax department without taking approval from higher authorities.

The cabinet secretariat and vigilance department have been made nodal departments

The directive came against the backdrop of the recent summons issued to Hemant Soren in connection with several money laundering cases.

Central agencies have been probing multiple alleged cases of illicit financial transactions in Jharkhand in which several high-ranking state officials are involved.

“In recent times, many such cases have come to the notice of the state government in which information available to the competent authority of the state government is sought by investigating agencies outside the state by sending summons/notices directly to the officials without conducting any preliminary inquiry,” a letter circulated amongst state officials, which has been accessed by India Today TV, stated.

The letter emphasised the need for a well-laid out process for information sharing. It even contended that the anti-corruption bureau, under the Cabinet Secretariat and monitoring department, should be the nodal department for liaising with the central investigating agencies.

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The letter further said that officers should first inform the nodal department if they have been asked by central agencies to submit any documents or appear for questioning.

The Cabinet’s decision to formulate a standard operating procedure (SOP) was taken at a meeting chaired by Soren in view of “handing over documents to external probe agencies without bringing it to the knowledge of state officials concerned”.

“The cabinet secretariat and vigilance department have been made nodal departments to deal with such issues and legal actions in the matter,” Cabinet Secretary Vandana Dadel said after the meeting.

“The nodal department will obtain legal advice accordingly. In light of the advice from the department, the official will provide necessary cooperation to the probe agency,” Dadel said.