Chhattisgarh: As part of the ongoing investigation into the coal levy money laundering case, the Enforcement Directorate (ED) conducted searches at various premises linked to Congress leaders. On Monday, the ED raided multiple locations in Chhattisgarh ahead of the 85th plenary session of the grand old party.
Chhattisgarh chief minister Bhupesh Baghel Monday hit out at Enforcement Directorate raids – over a money laundering case connected to an alleged coal levy scam – at eight locations in the state linked to members of the ruling Congress and said ‘our spirits cannot be broken by stopping our comrades’.
Baghel said: “Today the ED has raided the houses of many of my colleagues, including the treasurer of the Chhattisgarh Pradesh Congress Committee, the former vice-president of the party and an MLA,” he tweeted in Hindi. The raids come four days before the Congress hosts a plenary session in Raipur that is expected to be attended by over 10,00 functionaries and senior leaders.
Baghel said the raids were another indication the Bharatiya Janata Party ‘is frustrated with the success of (the) ‘Bharat Jodo Yatra’ and the truth of Adani (referring to the row over short-seller Hindenburg’s report accusing Gautam Adani’s conglomerate of financial fraud) being exposed’. “This raid is an attempt to divert attention. The country knows the truth. We will fight and win,” he said.
News of the raids have re-ignited claims by the Congress that the BJP uses central investigative agencies, like the ED, to target and harass opposition leaders, particularly before an election; Chhattisgarh will vote in November.
