Ranchi: The Jharkhand High Court on Wednesday rejected the bail plea of senior IAS officer Chhavi Ranjan, a key accused in a high-profile land scam involving the fraudulent sale and purchase of 5.44 acres of Army land in the Bargai circle of Ranchi. This comes as a major legal blow to the 2011-batch officer, who remains in custody amid an ongoing probe by the Enforcement Directorate (ED).
The court, after hearing arguments from both the ED and Ranjan’s defence counsel, had reserved its verdict on July 25. With this ruling, Ranjan’s hopes for interim relief have been dashed for the second time – earlier, the PMLA special court in Ranchi had also denied him bail.
ED Probing Alleged Money Laundering
According to sources, the ED is actively investigating how Ranjan, along with several accomplices, facilitated the illegal transfer and sale of Army land – considered highly sensitive and protected – by forging documents and manipulating land records. The central agency suspects large-scale money laundering linked to these fraudulent transactions.
Chhavi Ranjan was arrested by the ED while serving in the Social Welfare Department. His alleged role in the scam has drawn scrutiny due to his past posting as the Deputy Commissioner of Ranchi, a role in which he held significant administrative control over land records and mining leases.
Previous Controversies and Political Overtones
Notably, Ranjan had also approved a controversial stone mining lease for Chief Minister Hemant Soren in the Angara region, which later came under separate legal scrutiny. While not directly linked to the current ED case, this adds political context to his tenure and highlights the broader questions surrounding land allocation under his watch.
ED Files Chargesheet Against 12 Accused
The ED has already filed a comprehensive chargesheet against Ranjan and 11 others, including:
- Businessman Vishnu Agrawal
- Revenue sub-inspector Bhanu Pratap Prasad
- Land dealers Pradeep Bagchi, Afsar Ali, Imtiaz Khan, Talha Khan, Faiyaz Khan, Mohammad Saddam, Amit Agrawal, and Dilip Ghosh
They are accused of colluding to manipulate land ownership records, forge Army land documents, and monetize the illegal transactions, violating provisions under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA).
Next Legal Steps
With the High Court rejecting his bail, Mr Ranjan may now approach the Supreme Court for relief. Meanwhile, the ED is expected to file supplementary chargesheets as investigations progress.
