ED searches residences of Chhattisgarh ex-CM Bhupesh Baghel, son in liquor scam

According to sources, ED has gathered information that Chaitanya Baghel allegedly received proceeds of crime generated from the liquor scam.

It is alleged that under the scam, a total of Rs 2,161 crore was siphoned off through various schemes between 2019 and 2023, during the previous Congress government in Chhattisgarh.

Soon after the searches started on Monday, Baghel’s official social media handle on X released a statement claiming that it was part of a conspiracy to stop Baghel from doing party work in Punjab.

The statement read, “While the false case going on for seven years was dismissed in court, today ED guests have entered the Bhilai residence of former Chief Minister, Congress General Secretary Bhupesh Baghel this morning. If someone is trying to stop Congress in Punjab with this conspiracy, then it is a misunderstanding.”

सात वर्षों से चले आ रहे झूठे केस को जब अदालत में बर्खास्त कर दिया गया तो आज ED के मेहमानों ने पूर्व मुख्यमंत्री, कांग्रेस महासचिव भूपेश बघेल के भिलाई निवास में आज सुबह प्रवेश किया है.

अगर इस षड्यंत्र से कोई पंजाब में कांग्रेस को रोकने का प्रयास कर रहा है, तो यह गलतफहमी है.

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— Bhupesh Baghel (@bhupeshbaghel) March 10, 2025

Earlier this year, Baghel was chosen by the Congress as its general secretary for Punjab.

Since then, he has visited Punjab once, taken meetings with political leaders and started preparations for the Punjab elections set to be held two years from now. “He has also met with Punjab leaders in Delhi. He will travel more to Punjab now,” said a source close to Baghel.

The ED had registered an Enforcement Case Information Report (ECIR) in January last year against alleged mastermind of the liquor scam, Anwar Dhebar, who is the brother of Raipur mayor Aijaz Dhebar; retired IAS officer Anil Tuteja, then joint secretary in Chhattisgarh; ITS Arun Pati Tripathi, then Special Secretary Government Commerce and Industry Department and MD, CG State Marketing Corporation Ltd; and others for allegedly collecting commissions and supplying unaccounted liquor to government liquor shops, resulting in approximate loss of Rs 2,161 crore to the state government.

In January, ED arrested former excise minister Kawasi Lakhma, 67, for his alleged role in the scam. ED counsel Saurabh Kumar Pandey told the court that Lakhma received Rs 72 crore in the scam and alleged that he used some of the money to build a Congress office and a home for his son.