Land scam case: Jharkhand High Court grants bail to former chief minister Hemant Soren

Jharkhand High Court granted bail to former Jharkhand Chief Minister Hemant Soren on June 28 in the land scam case. 

Hemant Soren was arrested by the Enforcement Directorate (ED) on January 31 after a seven-hour interrogation. He had resigned from the chief minister post before his arrest.  

Hemant Soren illegally acquired and possessed land parcels of approximately 8.5 acres, the ED had claimed. 

The probe agency's investigation also revealed that several chats and other information pertaining to cash transactions obtained from Bhanu Pratap Prasad's mobile phone revealed illegal benefits that Hemant Soren received in acquiring these land parcels. 

More than 25 people, including Soren, IAS officer and former Ranchi Deputy Commissioner Chhavi Ranjan, Bhanu Pratap Prasad and others were arrested by the Enforcement Directorate as part of the investigation into the case.

At the time of his arrest, Soren had strongly denied land grabbing charges against him, saying the money laundering case was foisted against him by the BJP-led central government as part of a political vendetta.

On June 22, the Enforcement Directorate seized Rs 1 crore in cash and 100 live bullet rounds following raids in Ranchi as part of an alleged land grab-linked money laundering investigation against Soren and others.

Last month, the Jharkhand High Court had said that Soren cannot “wriggle out of the mess he created for himself” by citing political vendetta, and had dismissed his application challenging his summons and arrest by the ED.

Soren had told the court that his arrest was part of the BJP’s “game plan” of vendetta against leaders of the Opposition INDIA bloc in which he and his party are vocal participants.