Why ED raided premises linked to Jharkhand IAS officer Vinay Kumar Choubey | Latest news India

The Enforcement Directorate on Tuesday raided premises linked to IAS officer Vinay Kumar Choubey, other government officials and several liquor businessmen in Jharkhand and Chhattisgarh in connection with an alleged excise scam. The agency is searching at least 15 properties in Ranchi and Raipur.

The action was taken after registering a case under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA) with the Jharkhand office of the federal investigation agency.

Jharkhand is currently preparing to vote in the parliamentary elections.

What is it about?

The Enforcement Directorate has taken cognizance of an FIR filed by the Anti-Corruption Bureau (ACB) of Chhattisgarh Police in Raipur, in which Choubey, retired Chhattisgarh IAS officer Anil Tuteja, Anwar Dhebar, elder brother of Raipur Mayor Aijaz Dhebar, Arunpati Tripathi, an Indian, was mentioned. Telecom Service (ITS) officer and special secretary of Chhattisgarh excise department, and four others, PTI reported.

The premises linked to 1999 batch Jharkhand cadre IAS officer Choubey, joint secretary of the state excise department Gajendra Singh and liquor traders are being raided.

Vinay Kumar Choubey was the principal secretary to Jharkhand Chief Minister Hemant Soren and the state’s excise secretary during the implementation of the 2022 excise policy.

Police alleged in the FIR that the Jharkhand Liquor Policy 2022 illegally benefited liquor syndicates, causing losses to the Jharkhand government’s exchequer.

It also alleged that officials in Chhattisgarh helped frame similar policies in Jharkhand as they had created in their state.

It alleged that the illegal trade in Jharkhand was under the tutelage and protection of Choubey and Gajendra Singh.

The ED arrested Tuteja, Dhebar, Tripathi and some others in the Chhattisgarh liquor-linked money laundering case.

With inputs from PTI