Jharkhand Mukti Morcha chief Shibu Soren, who was in and out of the ministry for quite some time, on Monday expressed dissatisfaction over his non-induction in the Union Cabinet.
"This is wrong. It is about the United Progressive Alliance and not about having cases against you. It is not about who is tainted or not. Ask (Railway Minister) Lalu Prasad Yadav. Doesn't he have cases against him?" Soren, MP from Dhumka in Jharkhand, told reporters.
His remarks came when reporters sought his reaction about his non-induction in the Cabinet.
The 64-year-old former Union coal minister first became a Union Cabinet minister in May 23, 2004, but had to resign two months later after a court issued a non-bailable warrant against him in a 20-year-old murder case.
He was re-inducted into the cabinet as coal minister in November same year, but had to resign two years later after a Delhi court convicted him in the 1994 case of murder of his private secretary Sashinath Jha.
However, Delhi high court in August 2007 acquitted him in this case.
More from rediff