The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) conducted raids on Wednesday at the residences of Congress General Secretary and former Chhattisgarh Chief Minister Bhupesh Baghel in connection with the Mahadev betting app case. CBI officials arrived at Baghel’s homes in both Raipur and Bhilai just before he was scheduled to attend a meeting at the Congress headquarters in Delhi, according to a tweet from his office. Last year, the Madhya Pradesh government had authorized the CBI to investigate 70 cases linked to the Mahadev betting scam, which had been filed across multiple police stations in the state.
In a tweet, Baghel’s office shared, “Now CBI has come. Former Chief Minister Bhupesh Baghel is scheduled to go to Delhi today for the meeting of the ‘Drafting Committee’ for the AICC meeting, which is set to be held in Ahmedabad (Gujarat) on April 8-9. Even before that, CBI has reached his Raipur and Bhilai residences.”
State Congress communication head Sushil Anand Shukla criticized the CBI action, stating that neither Baghel nor the Congress party was intimidated. He accused the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) of using central agencies to target political opponents, claiming that the BJP was “scared” ever since Bhupesh Baghel became the party in-charge for Punjab. “First, the Enforcement Directorate (ED) raided his residence, and now, the CBI has been sent. This shows the BJP’s fear. When the BJP fails to fight politically, it uses central agencies against its opponents,” Shukla remarked, emphasizing that the people were aware of the BJP’s “oppressive” political tactics.
In the ongoing investigation, the Enforcement Directorate (ED) has already seized, attached, and frozen assets worth Rs 2,295 crore as part of its probe into the Mahadev Online Betting app.
This action follows a series of raids conducted by the ED on March 10 at 14 locations in the Durg district, including Baghel’s residence and that of his son, Chaitanya Baghel, in connection with an alleged liquor scam case. In the aftermath of those raids, Baghel posted on X, revealing that the ED had discovered Rs 33 lakh in cash at his residence. He clarified that the money was from his farming, dairy business, and family savings.
Previously, the ED had claimed that the beneficiaries of the alleged liquor scam had accumulated Rs 2,100 crore in proceeds of crime, resulting in a significant loss to the state exchequer.
