Chhattisgarh: ED files supplementary prosecution complaint, nails top bureaucrats and politicians in liquor scam

Raipur, Dec 30 (IANS) The Enforcement Directorate has filed a supplementary prosecution complaint that details a meticulously planned liquor scam generating proceeds of crime worth approximately Rs 2883 crore between 2019 and 2023.

The probe exposes a powerful criminal syndicate that systematically undermined the state’s excise policy through multiple illegal channels to siphon off massive funds.

According to the investigation agency, the latest complaint, filed on December 26, arraigns 59 new individuals, bringing the total number of accused to 81. These include senior bureaucrats such as retired IAS officer Anil Tuteja, former Excise Commissioner Niranjan Das, and ITS officer Arun Pati Tripathi, who served as Managing Director of the state marketing corporation, alongside around 30 field-level excise officials who received fixed commissions for enabling illicit sales.

Political executives feature prominently, with former Excise Minister Kawasi Lakhma, Chaitanya Baghel, son of the then Chief Minister, and Saumya Chaurasia, a deputy secretary in the Chief Minister’s office who allegedly coordinated cash handling and officer postings, all named for approving policies and channelling illicit funds into personal ventures.

The scam operated via four main streams: “illegal commissions” on official liquor sales financed by inflating prices borne by the state exchequer, a parallel off-the-books system for “selling unaccounted country liquor” using duplicate holograms and cash-purchased bottles that evaded all duties.

Also, annual “cartel payments” from distillers to retain market dominance and licenses, and extortion through a newly created license category that diverted substantial profits from foreign liquor manufacturers to the syndicate, a statement of the investigation agency said.

Private players form the backbone of the operation, led by Anwar Dhebar and Arvind Singh, with distilleries and merchants actively participating in unaccounted production and commission payments, supported by facilitators supplying duplicate holograms and collecting cash, the probe agency said.

Nine key figures have been arrested under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act, including Anil Tuteja, Arvind Singh, Trilok Singh Dhillon, Anwar Dhebar, Arun Pati Tripathi, Kawasi Lakhma, Chaitanya Baghel, Saumya Chaurasia, and Niranjan Das, though some are presently on bail, the agency said in a statement.

The agency has provisionally attached properties worth Rs 382.32 crore, covering over a thousand assets ranging from luxury hotels to extensive holdings linked to the involved families and entities, it said.

The investigation continues to unravel the depth of this conspiracy that infiltrated the highest levels of administration and politics, causing colossal losses to public revenue while enriching a select nexus of power and profit, the agency said.

sktr/dan