Raipur: The Enforcement Directorate (ED) raided early today the properties of Congress leader Bhupesh Baghel and his son Chaitanya Baghel. The ED squad raided Chaitanya Baghel’s property in Bhilai and other places. The raids are under the probe of a money laundering case involving the alleged liquor scam. As per ED, the liquor syndicate resulted in huge losses to the state exchequer, and over ₹2,100 crore was diverted by the involved parties.
BJP reacted to the ED’s move sharply. Arun Saw, BJP state president, said that the raids were not surprising, as various scams took place during Bhupesh Baghel’s regime. He added that the ED’s probe had been going on for a long period of time, and now, as per some facts and suspicions, the raids were carried out. He also said that if nobody is involved, there is nothing to worry about.
But Bhupesh Baghel’s followers have called the raids political vendetta and are demonstrating against the ED’s actions. Bhupesh Baghel was acquitted last week by a special CBI court in the 2017 alleged sex CD case. Following this, the present raid has generated political debate and controversy.
The ED states that a number of key personalities were arrested in January, including former minister Kavasi Lakhma and Anwar Dhebhar, the older brother of Raipur’s mayor, Ejaz Dhebhar. The liquor scam, which reportedly occurred between 2019 and 2022 when Bhupesh Baghel was in power, has already witnessed the seizure of assets valued at ₹205 crore.
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