chhattisgarh-police-books-j-khand-ias-officer-in-liquor-scam

The Economic Offence Wing (EOW) of Raipur Police in Chhattisgarh has lodged a case regarding an alleged Rs 2,050 crore liquor scam in the State. The case implicates officials from both Chhattisgarh and Jharkhand, including senior IAS officer and former Excise Secretary of Jharkhand, Vinay Chaubey.

Notably, Chubey has served on many key posts including Secretary to Chief Minister in the regime of Hemant Soren.

The investigation began with a statement from Vikas Singh, a resident of Argora police station area in Ranchi, which led the EOW Inspector in Raipur to initiate a probe.

Singh's allegations include claims that several Chhattisgarh officials, such as retired IAS officer Anil Tuteja, Anwar Dhebar (the brother of the Raipur Mayor),

Arunpati Tripathi, and their syndicate, orchestrated a scheme that caused massive revenue losses worth billions of rupees to the Chhattisgarh government through the liquor scam.

The allegations also suggest that this syndicate collaborated with Jharkhand officials, manipulated Jharkhand's excise policy, and caused further damage to government revenue.

Additionally, accusations indicate that both states’ officials were involved in a scam related to manpower supply. Multiple meetings between officials from both states allegedly took place from December 2021 to January 2022.

Previously, in April 2023, IAS officers Vinay Chaubey and Karna Satyarthi provided statements to the Enforcement Directorate (ED) in Raipur regarding the liquor scam.

The ED is also conducting its investigation into this Chhattisgarh liquor scam and has filed a First Information Report (FIR) with the Anti-Corruption Bureau (ACB).

The investigation revealed that the scam was executed during the tenure of the then Bhupesh government, involving an illegal syndicate led by IAS officer Anil Tuteja, Excise Department MD Arunpati Tripathi, and businessman Anwar Dhebar. From 2019 to 2022, counterfeit holograms were allegedly used to sell illegal liquor through government liquor shops, resulting in significant revenue losses for the government.