Bhopal: The Enforcement Directorate (ED) conducted raids at multiple sites associated with former Chhattisgarh Chief Minister and prominent Congress figure Bhupesh Baghel, including his residence in Bhilai city, as well as that of his son, Chaitanya Baghel, this morning in connection with an alleged multi-crore liquor scam.
ED officials searched at least 14 locations tied to the Baghel family in Durg district under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA). During these operations, several important documents were scrutinized, according to officials.
In response to the news, Mr. Baghel criticized the ED, asserting that the raids were a reaction to a court ruling that dismissed a “false case” that had persisted for seven years.
“Following the court’s dismissal of a false case that had been ongoing for seven years, the ED officials arrived at the Bhilai residence of former Chief Minister and Congress General Secretary Bhupesh Baghel this morning. If there is an attempt to undermine Congress in Punjab through this conspiracy, it is a grave misunderstanding,” stated Mr. Baghel.
Locations associated with close associates of Chaitanya Baghel were also among those targeted in the investigation related to the money laundering case.
This inquiry pertains to an alleged liquor scam that the central agency claims resulted in a “significant loss” to the state treasury. They allege that individuals involved in the liquor syndicate misappropriated approximately Rs 2,161 crore through various schemes.
Chaitanya Baghel is reported to have received funds derived from this purported scam, as stated by officials.
The ongoing investigation by the Enforcement Directorate (ED) has uncovered that the liquor syndicate functioned from 2019 to 2022, amassing significant sums through various illicit means. One method involved soliciting bribes from distillers for each liquor ‘case’ acquired by the state liquor authority.
Additionally, the alleged scam encompassed the sale of country liquor from government-operated shops, which remained completely unrecorded. The ED asserts that not a single rupee reached the state treasury, with all proceeds being appropriated by the individuals implicated in the syndicate.
According to the ED, distillers were also required to pay bribes that enabled them to maintain a liquor cartel with a predetermined market share. Commissions were similarly imposed in the foreign liquor sector.
