Intensifying its inquiries into the liquor scam and alleged irregularities in District Mineral Foundation (DMF) allocations, the State Economic Offences Investigation and Anti-Corruption Bureau (SEOIACB) on Sunday searched nineteen locations across Chhattisgarh. “The operation followed fresh documentary and digital correlations requiring immediate verification,” a senior officer involved in the statewide exercise told ‘The Hitavada’.

 

As the actions rolled out across districts, the political counter-narratives unfolded quickly. Former Chief Minister Bhupesh Baghel described the searches as an attempt at ‘selective targeting’. Responding to the criticism, Chief Minister Vishnu Deo Sai underscored the Government’s stance, stating, “Our Government is working on a policy of zero tolerance. Agencies are examining every corruption complaint, and action will be taken against anyone found guilty.”

 

Meanwhile, senior SEOIACB officers familiar with Sunday’s search operations said the DMF case is registered as Crime No 02/2024 under Sections 7 and 12 of the Prevention of Corruption Act, 1988 (as amended 2018), alongside IPC Sections 420 and 120B. The liquor scam case is registered as Crime No 04/2024 under the same Act with IPC Sections 420, 467, 468, 471 and 120B. Of the 19 locations examined, 11 fell under the DMF probe and 8 under the liquor FIR, spanning Raipur, Bilaspur, Surguja, Kondagaon, Dhamtari, Balrampur, Bastar and Durg. In Raipur, four premises tied to the DMF case were scrutinised, including the Law Vista Colony residence of government supplier Harpal Singh Arora, with investigators reviewing documents, devices and contractor-linked files cited in the case papers.

 

Officers said the materials were ‘central to reconstructing allocation and commission flows’. In Kondagaon, teams inspected the Sargipal Road residence of businessman Konark Jain, associated with DMF supply activity in 2019-20, before moving to Chopra Metal, where the shutter was opened to review GST entries, billing books and supply registers. Officers described the records as ‘vital for tracing multi-year transaction patterns’. In Surguja, searches at the homes of supplier Amit Agrawal and veterinary officer Dr Tanvir Ahmed yielded procurement records, banking entries and digital devices.

 

In Balrampur, the residence of DMF supplier Manoj Agrawal was examined for documents linked to earlier allocations. Eight premises were searched under the liquor FIR. In Bilaspur, officers examined ledgers, digital files and property papers at the Dayalband residence of Ashok Tuteja, brother of retired IAS officer Anil Tuteja. In Bhilai and Jagdalpur, teams inspected locations tied to retired Excise Commissioner Niranjan Das and his brother Chitranjan Das, reviewing departmental papers, property documents and transaction-linked files.

 

In Dhamtari, the residence of Ketan Doshi, grandson of former MLA Jaya Ben Doshi, at Mahalakshmi Greens, was searched for land, business and property-linked documents. Several records were seized for forensic scrutiny. Officials overseeing the broader inquiry confirmed that important documents, digital evidence and transaction-led materials recovered during Sunday’s operations will now be integrated into the expanding investigation. They added that the probe has entered a ‘rigorous verification stage, with statewide financial footprints being matched systematically’.

 

The DMF case, built on Enforcement Directorate findings, centres on alleged manipulation of tender allocations and illicit commissions routed through contractors Sanjay Shinde, Ashok Kumar Agrawal, Mukesh Kumar Agrawal, Rishabh Soni, and intermediaries Manoj Kumar Dwivedi, Ravi Sharma, Piyush Soni, Piyush Sahu, Abdul and Shekhar. Earlier ED action led to seizure of Rs 76.50 lakh in cash, freezing of eight bank accounts with Rs 35 lakh and recovery of dummy firm records and digital devices.

 

Assets worth Rs 23.79 crore belonging to suspended IAS officer Ranu Sahu, Maya Warrier, Manoj Kumar Dwivedi and others remain provisionally attached.