Chhattisgarh Liquor Scam: ED Attaches Assets Worth Over ₹121 crore of Raipur Congress Mayor's brother Anwar Dhebar, IAS Officer Anil Tuteja

The Enforcement Directorate (ED) today (May 22) announced that it has provisionally attached assets worth more than Rs 121 crore of Anwar Dhebar, the elder brother of Raipur Mayor and senior Congress leader Aijaz Dhebar, IAS officer Anil Tuteja, former MD of Chhattisgarh State Marketing Corporation Ltd. Arun Pati Tripathi and other as part of its ongoing investigation in to the liquor scam-linked money laundering case.

The properties, provisionally attached under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA), include 14 properties of Tuteja worth Rs.8.83 crore, 69 properties of Anwar Dhebar worth Rs 98.78 crore and one asset of Tripathi worth Rs 1.35 crore, the federal agency said in a statement.

Hotel Vennington Court in state capital Raipur of Anwar Dhebar, being run under the aegis of his firm A Dhebar Buildcon, has also been attached, it said.

Aijaz Dhebar, who is a close associate of CM Bhupesh Baghel, was elected by the Congress corporators as the Mayor in January 2020. Dhebars, who are among the richest families in Raipur, have multiple business interests including hospitality and real estate.

The total value of the attached properties is Rs 121.87 crore.

This money laundering case stems from a 2022 Income Tax department charge sheet filed against IAS officer Tuteja and others before a court in Delhi.

Anwar Dhebar, Tripathi and two others have been arrested by the ED in this case till now.

According to the ED, the corruption was committed during the 2019-2022 period. It is alleged that bribes were collected from the distillers for the procurement of liquor from them by the Chhattisgarh State Marketing Corporation Limited (CSMCL). The ED alleges funds generated by the off-the-books sale of unaccounted country liquor were pocketed by the syndicate and the illegal liquor was sold only from State-run shops. The bribes were allegedly taken from distillers to allow them to make a cartel and have a fixed market share. Commissions were charged from “FL-10A” licence holders who were introduced to earn in the foreign liquor segment also.