New Delhi:

The Enforcement Directorate (ED) has moved the Supreme Court challenging the Jharkhand High Court’s order granting bail to JMM leader Hemant Soren in a money laundering case linked to an alleged land scam.

The high court had on June 28 granted bail to Mr Soren, who on July 4 took oath as the chief minister of Jharkhand.

Mr Soren, the executive president of the Jharkhand Mukti Morcha (JMM), had resigned as chief minister shortly before his arrest on January 31 by the ED in the case.

Earlier during the hearing in the high court, ED’s counsel had argued that if Mr Soren was released on bail, he might commit a similar offence and referred to cases against ED officers in the SC/ST police station.

“Though the conduct of the petitioner has been sought to be highlighted by the Enforcement Directorate on account of the First Information Report instituted by the petitioner against the officials of the ED, but on an overall conspectus of the case, there is no likelihood of the petitioner committing a similar nature of offence,” the high court had said.

The single bench order had also mentioned that the consequence of the findings recorded by the court “satisfies the condition as at section 45 of the Prevention of Money Laundering Act, 2002 to the effect that there is reason to believe that the petitioner is not guilty of the offence as alleged”.

Mr Soren was summoned multiple times by the ED before being questioned at his residence and subsequently arrested on January 31. 

(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)

Ranchi:

Ex-Jharkhand Chief Minister Hemant Soren has been granted bail by the High Court. “Bail is granted. The court held, prima facie, Hemant Soren is not guilty, and there is no likelihood of the petitioner committing an offence on bail,” Mr Soren’s counsel Arunabh Chowdhury, told news agency PTI.

The Jharkhand Mukti Morcha leader was arrested by the Enforcement Directorate on January 31 on money laundering charges. The ED has accused him of running a scheme to manipulate records, via fictitious transactions and forged documents, and acquire 8.86 acres of land in Ranchi worth crores.

The bail order today comes after a twin setback last month.

First, the Ranchi special court denied Mr Soren bail.

Then, in the Supreme Court, the Jharkhand leader was forced to withdraw an interim bail plea after tough questions over non-disclosure of facts; the focus was on Mr Soren not revealing the special court – which hears cases related to money laundering – had taken cognisance of the complaint against him.

READ | No Interim Bail Yet For Hemant Soren. He Cited Kejriwal’s Example

There was also confusion over a prior bail plea – dismissed – in the High Court, which then pointed to an “abundance of documents that lay foundation for the arrest and remand of petitioner”.

NDTV Explains | Hemant Soren’s 2 Bail Pleas And A Rap By Supreme Court

This was after the Supreme Court issued a notice to the central agency and sought its response to an interim bail plea filed before it on grounds the High Court was delaying delivery of its judgement.

The Supreme Court setback meant Mr Soren – unlike Aam Aadmi Party leader and Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal, arrested by the ED in the alleged liquor policy scam – could not campaign for his party, and the Congress-led INDIA opposition bloc, in the April-June Lok Sabha election.

Mr Kejriwal had been granted bail by the top court to campaign for the AAP.

READ | 9 Acre Illegal Land, BMW Car: What Report On Soren’s Claims

Hemant Soren resigned as Chief Minister on January 31, hours after the ED began a marathon questioning session and then informed him he would be arrested.

READ | Soren Refused To Sign Arrest Memo Until He Resigned: Sources

Mr Soren, however, refused to accept the arrest memo till he had quit his post, in order to avoid being the first sitting Chief Minister to be arrested.

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