The Supreme Court of India on today granted conditional bail to former Ranchi Deputy Commissioner (DC) and IAS officer Chhavi Ranjan, providing significant relief in the high-profile Ranchi land scam case. Ranjan, who was arrested by the Enforcement Directorate (ED) in May 2023, had been in judicial custody for over a year. The order came weeks after the Enforcement Directorate (ED) sought additional time to submit its response. The bench of Justice Surya Kant and Justice Joymala Bagchi allowed the bail petition with specific conditions yet to be detailed in the court’s order.
Also Read: Court Rejected Passport Plea of IAS Pooja Singhal and Husband
Bail granted after earlier rejections
Ranjan had earlier faced setbacks at both the PMLA (Prevention of Money Laundering Act) Court and the Jharkhand High Court, which denied him bail citing the seriousness of the allegations. On 6th August, the High Court, led by Justice Sujit Narayan Prasad, had rejected his plea. Following this, Ranjan approached the Supreme Court, seeking relief from continued custody in the money laundering case being probed by the ED.
Also Read: ED Raided Nine Locations in Ranchi, Delhi Linked to Kanke Land Scam
Defence land sale case in Ranchi’s Bariatu area
The case stems from the alleged illegal sale of land under Army possession in Ranchi’s Bariatu area, within the Bargai circle. Ranjan, along with several others, including businessmen Vishnu Agarwal and Amit Agarwal, revenue officer Bhanu Pratap Prasad, and multiple local agents, were accused of manipulating land records and using forged documents to transfer the property. The ED has claimed that official records were altered to show Army land as private property, enabling fraudulent transactions.
Also Read: Avinash Kumar Appointed as Chief Secretary of Jharkhand, Succeeds Alka Tiwari
Join the WhatsApp Group of Business Jharkhand to Stay tuned for all the latest updates of industrial-political developments in Jharkhand.
