Raipur: Bhupesh Baghel, the chief minister of Chhattisgarh, accused the Enforcement Directorate (ED) of being an “agent” of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and scoffed at the agency’s allegations of a state-wide spirits fraud. Baghel asserted that the BJP attempted to tarnish the state’s Congress administration using the ED as the Assembly elections drew closer. After this year, the state elections are scheduled.
Anwar Dhebar, a businessman in the alcohol industry and the brother of Congressman and Raipur Mayor Aijaz Dhebar, was detained by the ED on Saturday in connection with an alleged scam. The ED asserted in its remand motion submitted to a special court that a syndicate comprised of high-ranking state government members, private citizens, and political figures had engaged in a “massive scam” in the liquor trade in Chhattisgarh. Between 2019 and 22, the syndicate is said to have earned over Rs 2,000 crore in corruption money, also utilised for electioneering. Anil Tuteja, an IAS official, was identified by the ED as the other “kingpin” of the syndicate alongside Anwar.
In the lead-up to the Assembly elections, tensions between the Congress and the BJP in the state are on the rise. Congress has charged the BJP to utilise federal organisations like the ED and the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) to target opposition figures and delegitimise the Congress-led state administration. The BJP, on the other hand, has refuted these claims and charged the Congress with mismanagement and corruption. The ED’s probe into the alleged liquor fraud is an important topic in the state polls.