Former Chhattisgarh Minister Kawasi Lakhma Arrested in Alleged Liquor Scam, Claims He Was Misled
Kawasi Lakhma, a prominent Congress leader and former excise minister in Chhattisgarh, was arrested by the Enforcement Directorate (ED) on Wednesday in connection with a multi-crore liquor scam. Lakhma, who served as a six-time MLA for Konta in Sukma, was questioned for several days by the ED in Raipur before his arrest.
The case, which is said to have occurred under the Congress government of Bhupesh Singh Baghel, involves allegations that a criminal syndicate worked with excise officials to divert liquor to government-run shops while also extorting illegal commissions from their sales. The ED estimates the total value of the scam to be around Rs 2,161 crore.
Lakhma has denied the allegations, stating that he was unaware of the details of the scam and that he was being falsely implicated. “I’m illiterate, I don’t know what I signed,” he told reporters as he was being taken to court. Lakhma also claimed that the BJP was behind his arrest, accusing them of attempting to discredit him and hurt the Congress party ahead of the upcoming local body elections.
The ED’s raids in December 2024 targeted several properties linked to Lakhma, including his official residence in Raipur and his son’s home in Sukma. Despite the extensive investigations, Lakhma maintains his innocence, insisting that he had cooperated fully with authorities and that no illicit funds were found in his possession.
The case has sparked political controversy, with Lakhma questioning why the ED did not act sooner, pointing out that the scam has been ongoing for a year. He suggested that the timing of the action was politically motivated.
The Chhattisgarh Anti-Corruption Bureau (ACB) had filed an FIR earlier this year based on complaints from the ED. The case involves 70 accused individuals, including Lakhma, senior bureaucrats, and other officials. Anwar Dhebar, the brother of Raipur’s Congress mayor, is allegedly the mastermind behind the operation.
News Source : “Information for this article was gathered from a variety of reliable news outlets.”
