Chhattisgarh Chief Minister Vs Bhupesh Baghel Over Son's Arrest In Liquor Scam

As the Enforcement Directorate deepened its probe into the alleged Rs 2,563 crore Chhattisgarh liquor scam, the arrest of Chaitanya Baghel, son of former Chief Minister Bhupesh Baghel, has triggered a full-blown political firestorm. While the probe agency officials have painted the arrest as a breakthrough in what they call an "institutionalised system of plunder", the political class is sharply divided, with the Congress calling it a witch-hunt, and the ruling BJP describing it as "just the beginning."

Mr Baghel struck a defiant tone. He alleged that the arrest of his son was not a legal move, but a politically motivated act of intimidation - "a calculated attempt to break me."

"The Enforcement Directorate conducted a raid at our residence in March. Then, just 15 days later on March 26, the CBI conducted another raid. From March 10 to July 18 - on my son's birthday - not once was he served a notice. Not a single round of questioning. And then suddenly, he is arrested?" he questioned.

He added, "The entire complaint is based on the statement of one man - Pappu Bansal. There is a non-bailable warrant against Bansal, and yet he walks free. He goes to the ED office, the CBI office, gives statements, but you take action not against him, but against my son? What kind of law is this? This is clearly a conspiracy using government agencies to harass me and my family."

The former Chief Minister went on to invite the press to visit his son's real estate project, which the probe agency has flagged as a major laundering front.

"I've heard - it was even reported in the news - that the project they're talking about, the one linked to my son, involved an investment of Rs 1,300 crore. That project isn't far from here. I invite all my journalist friends to come over for tea at the site. Come, see it for yourself and judge how much money has actually gone into it," he said.

He also described how the state machinery had targeted what he called "his weakest point."

"Family is the most vulnerable part of any individual. They know I've been to jail before, and I won't break. That's why they're targeting my son - to shake me. But they've underestimated him. My son is stronger than me. He won't break either," he said.

The current Chief Minister, Vishnu Deo Sai, hit back, saying that Mr Baghel's son's arrest was just the tip of the iceberg. "Let's see who's next, Some are already in jail. Some are still hiding in their burrows. But more arrests are bound to happen. This is just the beginning," he said.

He lashed out at the Congress for calling for an 'economic blockade' in protest of the arrest. "This is not about justice. This is about disturbing public life and causing inconvenience to the people of Chhattisgarh," he said.

Mr Sai emphasised that the enforcement directorate's investigation was lawful, data-backed, and overdue, adding that those trying to politicise it were only exposing their own fear.

"The ED is a central investigative agency. It takes action only after thorough consideration - not at someone's behest," he said.