Chhattisgarh High Court Rejects Pleas in Major Liquor Scam Case

Updated: Tuesday, August 20, 2024, 23:06 [IST]

The Chhattisgarh High Court has dismissed 13 petitions related to an alleged Rs 2,000 crore liquor scam. These petitions were filed by the accused, challenging cases lodged by the Enforcement Directorate (ED) and the state's Anti-Corruption Bureau/Economic Offences Wing (EOW). The decision was made by a division bench comprising Chief Justice Ramesh Sinha and Justice Ravindra Kumar Agrawal.

HC Rejects Liquor Scam Pleas — Representative image

Petitions Filed by Accused

Retired IAS officer Anil Tuteja, businessman Anwar Debhar, former managing director of Chhattisgarh State Marketing Corporation Limited Arunpati Tripathi, IAS officer and former excise commissioner Niranjan Das, and Noida-based businessman Vidhu Gupta were among those who filed separate petitions. They sought to quash the Enforcement Case Information Report (ECIR) lodged by the ED and the First Information Report (FIR) by ACB/EOW.

The court's ruling was pronounced on Tuesday after completing the hearing on July 10. Additional advocate general Vivek Sharma confirmed that all petitions were dismissed. The previous orders of interim relief granted to the petitioners were also cancelled.

High Court's Observations

The high court noted that from the perusal of the FIR and ECIR, it cannot be said that no prima facie offence is disclosed against the petitioners. The material collected during the investigation indicates that the nature of offences committed by the accused has caused significant financial loss to the state exchequer. The estimated proceeds of crime are around Rs 2,161 crore.

The court's decision underscores the gravity of the alleged offences and their impact on public funds. The dismissal of these petitions means that the legal proceedings against the accused will continue as per the established protocols.

This ruling marks a significant development in the ongoing investigation into one of Chhattisgarh's major financial scandals. The enforcement agencies will now proceed with their case against those implicated in this extensive scam.