Dispatch News.
After the raid of the Enforcement Directorate-ED in Chhattisgarh arrested the Chief Executive Officer of CHiPS, IAS officer Sameer Vishnoi and presented him in court. The ED informed the court that they discovered 4 kg of gold, 20-carat diamonds and Rs 47 lakh in cash in Sameer Vishnoi’s home. ED team has sought seven days transit remand. Some eminent lawyers are also arguing in the court on behalf of the accused to oppose this remand. On the other hand, Vishnoi’s wife met Chief Minister Bhupesh Baghel and complained about the ED forcibly harassing her.
The gold seized by the ED is said to be worth Rs 2 crore 20 lakh. Before presenting IAS Sameer Vishnoi in court, he underwent a medical examination in Mekahara. Sunil Aggarwal and Laxmikant Tiwari, both businessmen, have also been arrested. They are all facing charges such as illegal transactions with coal traders and having disproportionate assets.
A large team of ED, together with the security cordon of CRPF, raided 40 locations spread over several districts of Chhattisgarh in the early hours of Tuesday. These included the official residence of Raigarh Collector Ranu Sahu. Apart from this, the Director of Minerals Department IAS JP Maurya, Chief Executive Officer of CHiPS Sameer Vishnoi, former MLA Agni Chandrakar, including all traders and chartered accountants associated with the coal and transport businesses; got raided. When Ranu Sahu was not found in Raigarh, the agency sealed her official residence.
The agency had completed the raids by Wednesday. In the afternoon, IAS Sameer Vishnoi, his wife and other businessmen were taken into custody by the ED for questioning. Later, except for Vishnoi’s wife, the rest are ready to be arrested and presented in court. According to reports, the ED will also question Raigarh Collector Ranu Sahu.
Ranu Sahu, the Collector of Raigarh, has returned from Hyderabad. She has written a letter on her official letterhead to the investigating officer of ED stating that she will cooperate with the investigation. Ranu Sahu claims to have been on leave since October 10. She was receiving treatment at Hyderabad’s Yashoda Hospital. She also had a minor operation there. She has now arrived in Raigarh. They carry out administrative tasks in complete transparency. She has assured us that he will fully cooperate with the investigation of ED.
ED raids were conducted three days ago in Chhattisgarh’s Raigarh, Raipur, Bilaspur, Korba, and Mahasamund districts. Officials from the Enforcement Directorate (ED) arrived late at night in these major cities, and raids were carried out at various locations at 5:00 a.m.
At the same time, ED officials are taking action by forming different teams in over ten locations. Business persons and CAs are among those who got raided. Chief Minister Bhupesh Baghel has described the raid as a scare tactic. He stated that it was not the last time. They will return until the elections are over.
On the ED action, Chief Minister Bhupesh Baghel stated that it isn’t the last. Their visits will become more frequent as the election approaches. It is simply an intimidation tactic.
The ED team raided the premises of three traders on Korba’s Transport Nagar and Agrasen Marg. Police personnel were deployed near the house and office. Action is going on at RKTC company’s office, transporter Rajkumar Agarwal’s house and office and coal trader Sanjay Jaiswal’s house.
