RAIPUR :

 

THREE days after the Enforcement Directorate, Raipur Zonal Office (ED-RPZO), carried out extensive search operations across Chhattisgarh, fresh disclosures have added legal and investigative depth to the unfolding liquor scam probe, with total seizures pegged at approximately Rs 5.39 crore and further action under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA). During the course of searches, ED teams recovered cash amounting to Rs 53 lakh along with gold jewellery and bullion weighing approximately 3.234 kilograms, valued at around Rs 4.86 crore. In addition, investigators seized incriminating documents and digital devices, which are presently under detailed forensic analysis to trace financial transactions, layering of funds and linkages among entities under scrutiny.

 

The searches, conducted on April 30 under Section 17 of the PMLA, spanned 13 locations across Raipur, Durg-Bhilai and Bilaspur districts. The action covered liquor traders, Chartered Accountants, businesspersons and corporate entities suspected of involvement in concealment, possession, acquisition and use of proceeds of crime generated through the alleged scam. Notably, the pace and spread of recent enforcement activity are being viewed within official circles as coinciding with the recent joining of 2013-batch Indian Revenue Service officer Ajay Luhach as Additional Director at ED-RPZO, a development that is learnt to have brought sharper operational momentum and field-level coordination to the ongoing probe.

 

These entities are suspected to have received, handled, layered, or concealed the proceeds of crime generated through the said “scam”, the Enforcement Directorate (ED) said in a statement. So far, the agency has filed six chargesheets and named 81 accused, including Chaitanya Baghel, son of former Chief Minister Bhupesh Baghel, IAS officer and former Chhattisgarh excise commissioner Niranjan Das, former joint secretary and retired IAS officer Anil Tuteja, former excise minister Kawasi Lakhma and former deputy secretary in the CM’s office Saumya Chaurasia, among others. These accused have challenged ED proceedings before multiple courts up to the Supreme Court. The investigation, initiated on the basis of predicate offences registered by the State Economic Offences Investigation and Anti-Corruption Bureau (SEOIACB), has so far revealed a systematic and well-organised network allegedly involving political executives, senior bureaucrats, liquor traders, FL-10A licence holders and intermediaries. The network is suspected to have facilitated illegal commissions in procurement, licensing and sale of liquor in the State between 2019 and 2022. The proceeds of crime in the case have been earlier quantified at around Rs 2,883 crore.