Ranchi, Oct. 11 -- The Supreme Court on Friday granted bail to former Ranchi deputy commissioner Chhavi Ranjan in the Army land scam case on the condition that he will not leave Jharkhand without prior permission and will furnish bail bonds to the satisfaction of the trial court, a lawyer close to the matter said. According to high court lawyer, the order will pave the way for Ranjan's release from Birsa Munda Central Jail, where he is lodged after being arrested by the Enforcement Directorate on May 4, 2023. "A division bench of justices Suryakant and Nongmeikapam Kotiswar Singh passed the order after hearing the arguments of Ranjan's lawyers. Those who appeared in the case on behalf of Ranjan included Ajit Kumar Sinha, Abhishek Choudhary, Aalok Kumar, and Sahil Raveen," the advocate said. "Taking into consideration the period already spent by the petitioner in custody, however, without expressing any opinion on the nature of the allegations levelled against him, we are inclined to release the petitioner on bail. The petitioner is, accordingly, directed to be released on bail, subject to his furnishing bail bonds to the satisfaction of the trial court. The petitioner shall not leave the state of Jharkhand without prior permission of the trial court. He shall remain present before the trial court on every date of hearing and shall fully cooperate for the timely conclusion of the pending proceedings," the Supreme Court order read. The Supreme Court, before granting bail, observed that Ranjan does not have any criminal antecedents and that the co-accused in the case have already been released on bail. It also noted that only five out of 31 witnesses have been examined so far and that the conclusion of the trial will take time. "It is not in dispute that after completion of the investigation, the complaint was filed and the trial has commenced. Five out of thirty-one witnesses appear to have been examined so far. The conclusion of the trial will take some reasonable time. The co-accused have already been released on bail. The petitioner does not have criminal antecedents," the order read. The apex court observed that there is no likelihood of Ranjan influencing witnesses or tampering with evidence. "Keeping in view the background of the witnesses who have yet to depose, it appears that there is no likelihood of influencing the witnesses or tampering with the evidence. In any case, if such an attempt is made by the petitioner, it will amount to misuse of the concession of bail and necessary consequences will follow," the court order read. Before passing the bail order, the court outlined the case for which Ranjan was arrested. "The petitioner is one of the accused in ED Case No. ECIR/RNZO/18/2022. The allegations against the main accused (Amit Kumar Agarwal and others) are that they committed fraud in the records to execute a sale deed dated 01.10.2021, which pertained to a property owned by one Jayant Karnad. The petitioner was the deputy commissioner at the relevant time and is alleged to have conspired with and assisted the main accused in fabricating land records with a view to availing loan facilities," the order read....