Ex-CM Baghel's son got Rs 250 crore as his share from Chhattisgarh liquor 'scam': Chargesheet
Raipur (PTI): Chaitanya, son of former Chhattisgarh Chief Minister Bhupesh Baghel, received Rs 200 crore to Rs 250 crore as his share from an alleged liquor scam in the state, the Anti-Corruption Bureau/Economic Offence Wing (ACB/EOW) has claimed in its chargesheet.
The state police's ACB/EOW, in its seventh supplementary chargesheet in the multi-crore liquor scam filed before a special court here on Monday, claimed Chaitanya Baghel played a key role in establishing, coordinating, and protecting an extortion racket (syndicate) within the excise department (during the previous Congress government, which was in office from 2018-23).
The voluminous document, running into around 3,800 pages, has named Chaitnaya Baghel as an accused in the alleged scam pegged at more than Rs 3,000 crore, an ACB/EOW statement said.
With this, a total of eight chargesheets have been filed in the case so far.
The latest chargesheet details the current status of the investigation against the arrested accused, along with digital evidence reports about all those in custody. The document also outlines the progress of the ongoing probe against the accused persons.
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The statement quoting the chargesheet said Chaitanya Baghel acted as coordinator among officials such as Anil Tuteja, Soumya Chaurasia, Arunpati Tripathi, and Niranjan Das, who worked in line with the syndicate's interests at the administrative level and as ground-level operatives of the network, such as Anwar Dhebar, Arvind Singh, and Vikas Agarwal (all co-accused), and issued instructions to them.
Chaitanya Baghel worked through his trusted associates to transfer and manage proceeds of the scam collected by businessman Anwar Dhebar's team, moving the funds to higher levels, it claimed.
He allegedly received his share of the proceeds through various firms belonging to liquor businessman Trilok Singh Dhillon, transferring it through banking channels to his family firms and using it in real estate projects.
Furthermore, he was also found to have received and invested large sums of money generated out of the scam through banking channels via his family members, friends, and associates, the chargesheet claimed.
The probe agency said, "Evidence indicates that Chaitanya, along with managing the proceeds of the crime at a higher level, received around Rs 200 crore-Rs 250 crore as his share."
The investigation has also revealed that high-level protection, policy/administrative intervention, and influence provided to the syndicate by Chaitanya Baghel enabled this crime to be perpetrated for a long period, it claimed.
"The ongoing investigation suggests the amount involved in the liquor scam is estimated to be approximately Rs 3,074 crore. However, further investigation suggests the total amount of the proceeds of crime generated out of the alleged scam could exceed Rs 3,500 crore," it added.
The Enforcement Directorate (ED), which is probing the money laundering angle in the alleged scam, arrested Chaitanya Baghel on July 18 following a search at his house, which he shares with his father, a Congress politician, in Bhilai town of Durg district.
As per the ED's prosecution complaint (chargesheet) filed earlier, Chaitanya Baghel "handled" more than Rs 1,000 crore worth of "proceeds of crime" generated from a liquor "scam" in the state.
The central agency has stated that the alleged scam resulted in a "massive loss" to the state exchequer and filled the pockets of beneficiaries of a liquor syndicate.
The scam was orchestrated between 2019 and 2022 when then-CM Bhupesh Baghel headed the Congress government in Chhattisgarh.
Money was "illegally" collected from "every" bottle of liquor sold in Chhattisgarh (between 2019 and 2022), said the anti-money laundering agency.
Chaitanya Baghel was arrested by the ACB/EOW in September while he was in jail under judicial custody.
The ED in January arrested former excise minister and Congress leader Kawasi Lakhma, businessman Anwar Dhebar (brother of Congress leader and former Raipur Mayor Aijaz Dhebar), former IAS officer Anil Tuteja, Indian Telecom Service (ITS) officer Arunpati Tripathi and a few others as part of their probe in the case.
The EOW/ACB registered an FIR on January 17, 2024, in the alleged scam, naming 70 individuals and companies, including Lakhma and former chief secretary Vivek Dhand.
After his son was arrested, former CM Baghel claimed that the action was taken because the Congress, during its rule, tried to stop the cutting of forests and mining activities in the state.
The Congress leader also alleged that the probe agencies were being misused to target Opposition leaders.
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Real Madrid fines Valverde and Tchouaméni half a million euros each for altercation
Barcelona (AP): Real Madrid slapped players Federico Valverde and Aurélien Tchouaméni with half-a-million-euro ($588,000) fines on Friday for their altercation during practice.
The massive fines came a day after the midfielders tussled when the team trained. Valverde said in a post on social media on Thursday that no punches were thrown. But Valverde knocked his head on a table and he suffered a small cut that required a brief hospital visit.
On social media, Valverde initially called it a “meaningless fight” with a teammate and said “everything has been blown out of proportion."
His employers, however, considered it a significant enough breach of team discipline to nail both Valverde and Tchouaméni with fines that bite even the bank account of a top soccer player. The half-a-million euro penalties reflect the reputational damage the club was enduring in a chaotic end to a disappointing season.
In a statement, the 15-time European champion said its disciplinary action was concluded after both players expressed to the club “their complete remorse for what happened and apologized to one another.”
Madrid added they also apologized to their teammates, the coaching staff and club supporters, as well as showing their willingness to accept whatever disciplinary action the club deemed “opportune.”
Tchouaméni was back training with Madrid on Friday, two days before they play at Barcelona in a clasico. Madrid has to win otherwise Barcelona will be crowned La Liga champion.
After being notified of the fine, he posted a public apology to the club and its fans on social media.
“What happened this week in training is unacceptable,” Tchouaméni wrote. "I say this while thinking about the example we are expected to set for young people, whether in football or at school.
“Above all, I am sorry for the image we projected of the club.”
Valverde was not at practice due to the head knock.
Both players are set to play in the World Cup next month, with Tchouaméni playing for France and Valverde for Uruguay.
Chaotic end to a poor season
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The run-in between the players, who for seasons have played side by side in Madrid's midfield, came after they argued this week in previous training sessions. But tempers boiled over on Thursday. Spanish media was rife with reports that the players previously disagreed over the club's decision to let coach Xabi Alonso go after just months on the job.
It was not the only altercation involving Madrid players during training this week. Álvaro Carreras confirmed he was in a “minor” incident with a teammate. Spanish media said he and fellow defender Antonio Rüdiger got into a scuffle.
Álvaro Arbeloa, the coach who was promoted from Madrid's reserve team when Alonso was fired in January, will face tough questions on what went wrong inside the changing room when he gives a press conference on Saturday ahead of the clasico at Camp Nou.
Madrid is facing a second consecutive campaign without a major trophy amid rumors in the Spanish media that club president Florentino Pérez is considering bringing back Jose Mourinho to straighten out his underperforming team.
