Raipur: A special court of Raipur on August 4 extended the custody of Chaitanya Baghel, son of former Chhattisgarh Chief Minister Bhupesh Baghel by two weeks.
Chaitanya was sent to 14-day judicial custody after he was produced before the court on Monday following completion of his previous remand in connection with multi-crore alleged liquor scam.
Enforcement Directorate (ED) during the hearing of the matter demanded extension of Chaitanya’s custody to which the court agreed while instructing the agency to file a chargesheet before the court within seven days.
Meanwhile the Supreme Court on Monday directed former Chhattisgarh Chief Minister Bhupesh Baghel and his son Chaitanya to approach the Chhattisgarh High Court with regard to their individual reliefs against investigation and arrest in the case.
A bench of justices Surya Kant and Joymala Bagchi also asked the duo challenging the constitutional validity of ED’s powers to investigate arrest under provisions of Prevention of Money Laundering Act [PMLA] to file a fresh plea in the matter to which the court will consider on Wednesday.
ED arrested Chaitanya Baghel on July 18 in connection with the multi-crore scam that allegedly unfolded under the previous regime of Congress government led by former CM Bhupesh Baghel.
The agency following the arrest of Chaitanya claimed that he received Proceeds Of Crime (PoC) worth Rs 16.70 crore.
“Chaitanya allegedly routed the illicit funds through his real estate firms and used them in the development of a real estate project. The funds were laundered through cash payments to contractors and through falsified banking entries,” ED had said in its statement.
ED investigation further revealed that Chaitanya, in collusion with businessman Trilok Singh Dhillon, devised a scheme to indirectly receive Rs 5 crore under the guise of flat purchases in the “Vitthalpuram Project,” with payments made in the names of Dhillon’s employees.
“Banking trails show that during this time, Dhillon had received substantial payments from the liquor syndicate,” said the agency.
In a larger revelation, the ED stated that Chaitanya Baghel was involved in handling over Rs 1,000 crore of proceeds from the liquor scam. “He reportedly coordinated with key accused Anwar Dhebar and others to facilitate the transfer of illicit funds to the then treasurer of the Chhattisgarh Pradesh Congress Committee.”
The ED added that significant portions of this money were further invested through close associates of the Baghel family. “The end-use of these funds remains under investigation.”
It is to be noted that the ED also arrested senior Congress leader Kawasi Lakhma in connection with the said liquor scam in January this year.
As per ED, Lakhma used to “receive” a substantial amount in cash on a monthly basis out of proceeds of crime generated from the alleged liquor scam.
Chhattisgarh liquor scam case
The alleged liquor scam grabbed attention after ED following its investigation into the case claimed that the said scam resulted in a massive loss to the state exchequer and filled the pockets of the beneficiaries with more than Rs 2,100 crore in proceeds of crime generated by the commission of scheduled offences.
The agency has already arrested several prominent figures in the case, including former IAS officer Anil Tuteja, Arvind Singh, Trilok Singh Dhillon, Anwar Dhebar, Arun Pati Tripathi (ITS), and Anwar Dhebar, elder brother of Congress leader and former Raipur mayor Ezaj Dhebar.
A separate First Information Report (FIR) naming 70 people including Lakhma was also lodged by the state’s Economic Offences Wing (FIR) in January last year. The agency has already filed two separate chargesheets in connection with the case in July 2024 and June this year.
In the supplementary chargesheet filed before the court in June this year, the EOW had alleged the former Excise Minister for receiving Rs 60 crore from the scam.
“Under his protection a well-planned scam was executed through departmental officers, associate and contractors. It has been proved that Kawasi Lakhma has received Rs 64 crore as his share as a result of the excise scam,” EOW had claimed in a statement.
