SC Dismisses ED’s Plea Against Jharkhand CM Hemant Soren’s Bail

The Supreme Court on Monday dismissed the Enforcement Directorate’s (ED) plea challenging the Jharkhand High Court’s decision to grant bail to Chief Minister Hemant Soren. The high court had approved Soren’s bail on June 28 in connection with a money laundering case linked to an alleged land scam, subject to certain conditions. The bench, led by Justice B.R. Gavai and including Justice K.V. Viswanathan, decided not to interfere with this order, noting that the high court’s judgment was reasoned and would not impact the ongoing trial.

Following his release, Soren was sworn in as Jharkhand Chief Minister for the third time on July 4. He had been arrested by the ED on January 31 and spent five months in jail before his bail was granted. The ED had sought to cancel Soren’s bail by filing a special leave petition with the Supreme Court, which earlier had rejected Soren’s plea against his arrest in May.

The Supreme Court criticized the Jharkhand Mukti Morcha (JMM) leader for attempting to bypass regular judicial processes and not disclosing critical facts regarding the special court’s cognizance of the ED’s complaint. The Court found the plea lacked transparency and dismissed it, stating that the petitioner did not approach the court with clean hands.