Former Chhattisgarh Chief Minister Bhupesh Baghel has lashed out at the Enforcement Directorate (ED) for mentioning his name in its supplementary chargesheet (prosecution complaint), saying the move was part of a "political conspiracy" and the central agency was working "at the behest of its political masters". The senior Congress leader alleged that the ED had "engineered the entire incident" and was "pressuring people" to give statements against him and his colleagues. His remarks came after the ED, in the supplementary chargesheet filed before a Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA) court on January 1, said that a man arrested by the ED in connection with the Mahadev betting app case in Raipur in November had told the agency that he "stood by his original statement that he had allegedly been sent to deliver cash to Baghel". The chargesheet has been filed against five persons including Subham Soni, one of the promoters of 'Mahadev Online Book', and driver Asim Das. Das, 38, was arrested on November 3, and the ED had seized Rs 5.39 crore from him. As per the supplementary chargesheet, Das said in his statement to the ED that "Soni, who holds a prominent position in Mahadev company had tasked Das to deliver a substantial amount of cash (Rs 5.39 crore) to Baghel", an allegation that has been rubbished by Baghel, alleging it was a political conspiracy by the BJP, who was then in the opposition. The amount was part of "protection money" given by the Mahadev app accused to avoid his arrest, according to the statement. On this, Baghel wrote on X on Saturday, "The way the ED has written my name in its supplementary chargesheet, it is completely part of a political conspiracy. ED, at the behest of its political masters, is arresting people fraudulently and pressuring them to give statements against me and my colleagues. The allegations of money transactions made in these statements have no basis." प्रवर्तन निदेशालय (ईडी) ने अपने सप्लीमेंट्री चार्जशीट में जिस तरह से मेरा नाम लिखा है, वह पूरी तरह से राजनीतिक षड्यंत्र का हिस्सा है। ईडी अपने राजनीतिक आकाओं के इशारे पर कूटरचना कर लोगों को गिरफ़्तार कर रही है और उनसे दबावपूर्वक मेरे और मेरे सहयोगियों के ख़िलाफ़ बयान दिलवा रही… — Bhupesh Baghel (@bhupeshbaghel) January 6, 2024 While in judicial custody on November 10, Das wrote a letter to the court retracting his original statement and saying that the money found on him was meant for starting a construction business, and he had "given the statement against Baghel under pressure". He also said Soni was his childhood friend. On December 12, according to the ED, Das gave another statement in which he said he retracted his initial statement under the influence of an unnamed person who had arrived with his advocate. "We have been saying from the beginning that the ED is pressuring me and my colleagues to name me in the case by adopting every trick. from assault to threats. This has become more clear from the new ED document. I myself started the investigation into the Mahadev app scam, when I was the Chief Minister. I wanted this entire gang to be exposed and this crime of pushing the youth towards gambling to be stopped. On the basis of this probe by the Chhattisgarh government, ED is investigating a case of money laundering, but unfortunately. ED has made the investigation a weapon of political pressure and defamation. The way the entire case of Mahadev app has been given a political colour, it is clear that its objective now is only to save the actual criminals and benefit the BJP by spreading political propaganda.," said Baghel on Saturday. Das had also mentioned in his handwritten statement from jail that he, too, has been "deceived and implicated", and he never delivered money to any politician or people associated with him. The ED, however, claims now that Das has withdrawn this statement too. "Everyone knows the pressure under which this is happening. Now, the question is whether ED has the complete recording of the incident the day the money was allegedly recovered from Asim Das. This means that the entire incident was pre-planned and engineered by the ED itself". The ED, meanwhile, claimed that Chandrabhushan Verma — arrested in the online betting case — has also withdrawn his earlier statement.
