Truth can't be defeated: Baghel after Chhattisgarh HC grants bail to son Chaitanya in two cases

Raiupur, Jan 2 (PTI) Former Chhattisgarh chief minister Bhupesh Baghel welcomed the High Court's decision on Friday to grant bail to his son Chaitanya Baghel in two cases linked to the alleged liquor scam in the state.

The single bench of Justice Arvind Kumar Verma allowed Chaitanya’s bail pleas in a case lodged by the Enforcement Directorate (ED) and another by the Chhattisgarh Anti-Corruption Bureau (ACB)/Economic Offences Wing (EOW).

"Truth may be troubled, but it cannot be defeated. The high court has given great relief. It is a matter of great happiness that Chaitanya has been granted bail," the senior Congress leader told reporters.

"Chaitanya was arrested based on the statement of one Pappu Bansal, who is an absconder. I have been saying this from the beginning that the central and the state governments have been leaving no stone unturned to harass us," he alleged.

Agencies such as the ED, the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) and the EOW are being used to harass opposition leaders, he claimed.

The former CM claimed people have now understood that the BJP-led central government targets opposition parties through investigative agencies.

"Those who get scared, join their party or compromise, while those who do not are sent to jail. Our ancestors went to jail during the fight for Independence. If they did not fear the Britishers, why should we fear them (BJP) today?" Bhupesh Baghel said.

The ED arrested Chaitanya Baghel on July 18 last year in connection with its money laundering probe in the alleged scam, while the ACB/EOW placed him under arrest while he was in jail, on September 24 in its case linked to the corruption probe.

The liquor "scam" in the state, according to the ED, was orchestrated between 2019 and 2022 when Chhattisgarh was governed by the Bhupesh Baghel-led Congress government.

The alleged scam resulted in a "massive loss" to the state exchequer and filled the pockets of the beneficiaries of a liquor syndicate, it said.

As per the ED, Chaitanya Baghel was at the helm of the syndicate behind the alleged liquor scam and personally handled nearly Rs 1,000 crore generated from the scandal.

The ACB/EOW has claimed Chaitanya Baghel, along with managing the proceeds of crime at a higher level, received around Rs 200-250 crore as his share.

The proceeds of crime linked to the scam could exceed Rs 3,500 crore, the state agency had claimed. PTI COR TKP BNM