Chhattisgarh coal scam: “BJP frustrated… third-rate politics,” according to the Cong on ED raids
Monday, Bhupesh Baghel, the chief minister of Chhattisgarh, spoke out against raids by the Enforcement Directorate at eight locations in the state linked to members of the ruling Congress. The raids were done because of a money laundering case involving an alleged coal levy scam.
“ED raided the homes of many of my colleagues today, including the treasurer of the Chhattisgarh Pradesh Congress Committee, the former vice-president of the party, and an MLA,” he wrote in Hindi on Twitter.
Baghel also said that the raids were another sign that the Bharatiya Janata Party was upset about the success of the “Bharat Jodo Yatra” and the truth about Adani coming out (referring to the dispute over short-seller Hindenburg’s report that accused Gautam Adani’s conglomerate of financial fraud). “This raid is a way to get people to stop looking at them. The truth is known by the country. We’ll battle and win, “he said.
The Congress held a press conference in Delhi, where Jairam Ramesh and Pawan Khera said that prime minister Narendra Modi and the BJP were using “third-rate politics” with the raids. Ramesh and Khera also said that Prime Minister Modi uses “politics of vendetta and revenge.”
The raids happen four days before the Congress holds a plenary session in Raipur. More than 10,000 functionaries and top leaders are expected to attend.
A senior police official said earlier today that raids are happening in both the state capital Raipur and the Durg district. The ED is going after places that are linked to “some senior leaders, spokespersons, and a legislator.”
The Congress has said again that the BJP uses central investigative agencies like the ED to target and harass opposition leaders, especially before an election. Chhattisgarh will vote in November.
At the press conference in Delhi, Ramesh reminded reporters that 17 opposition parties had come together to oppose giving the ED more power under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act, and that they will file a petition with the Supreme Court to review the decision.
According to the news agency PTI, the lawmaker in question is Devendra Yadav from Bhilai in Durg. RP Singh, who is the state spokesperson for the Congress, also had places in Raipur searched. The official said that the agency is looking into the people it thinks made money from the alleged coal levy scam that took place while this Congress government was in power.
The ED says that for every tonne of coal that was moved in the state, a bribe of 25 was taken. Senior bureaucrats, businessmen, and politicians are said to be part of the group that pulled off the scam. The ED also says that 52 crore went to a senior politician and that 4 crore went to a number of MLAs.
Read: The ED has taken Saumya Chaurasia’s properties worth 7.57 crore because of the coal levy scam.
In court documents, the ED said it had found a “mega scam” whose “roots” could be found in a July 2020 notice signed by Sameer Vishnoi, an IAS officer who was then the head of the state government’s Geology and Mining department. So far, nine people have been arrested. These people include Vishnoi and coal businessman Sunil Agrawal.
