File picture of Chhattisgarh CM Bhupesh Baghel.
| Photo Credit: ANI
Senior Congress leader and former Chhattisgarh Chief Minister Bhupesh Baghel on Saturday (March 15, 2025) said his son hadn’t received any notice from the Enforcement Directorate to appear before it in connection with an alleged liquor scam linked to a money laundering case in the State.
Mr. Baghel’s statement has come amid reports that his son Chaitanya was summoned to appear before the central agency on Saturday to record his statement.
Media persons gathered outside the Baghel residence in Bhilai (Durg district) and the ED office at Netaji Subhash Stadium at Fire Brigade Chowk in Raipur since the morning.
Also Read | ED searches residence of former Chhattisharh CM Baghel, son in liquor scam case
Asked if his son would appear before the probe agency, Mr. Baghel said the question of going to the ED office did not arise if he (Mr. Chaitanya) hadn’t received a notice.
He said when summons are served, they will be complied with.
Talking to reporters outside his home in Bhilai, the Congress leader said, “It is ED’s work to create a media hype… the agency is being used to defame people. So far, they have been doing the same. There was a CD case against me for seven years. Recently, the court discharged me of all charges. This is a BJP conspiracy to defame a politician.”
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On March 10, the ED searched the Baghel residence in Bhilai town as part of the probe into a money laundering allegation against his son in the alleged liquor scam case, official sources had said.
Searches were also conducted at 13 more locations, including that of Laxmi Narayan Bansal alias Pappu Bansal, an alleged close associate of Mr. Chaitanya, under the provisions of the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA), they said.
The searches went on for about eight hours, during which the ED seized about ₹30 lakh cash and some documents, sources said.
Following the search, there were unconfirmed reports that the ED had summoned Mr. Chaitanya to record his statement on Saturday (March 15, 2025).
Mr. Baghel, who was present at his house during searches, has claimed that the probe agency’s action was the outcome of the BJP’s frustration.
The main opposition Congress had on March 11 burnt the effigies of the BJP-led Centre and the ED protesting against the action.
The alleged liquor scam, as per the ED, was orchestrated between 2019 and 2022 when Chhattisgarh was ruled by a Congress government led by Mr. Baghel.
The agency had earlier said the Chhattisgarh liquor “scam” resulted in “massive loss” to the State exchequer and filled the pockets of the beneficiaries of a liquor syndicate with more than ₹2,100 crore of proceeds of crime.
Published – March 15, 2025 02:54 pm IST