CURATED BY – RAJEEV KHARE | CITYCHIEFNEWS

Raipur, As part of the investigation into the Mahadev Satta App scam, the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) on Monday morning conducted massive raids at 60 locations in Chhattisgarh, Delhi, Bhopal and Kolkata. In this action, the houses of former Chief Minister Bhupesh Baghel, his two former OSDs Ashish Verma and Manish Banchhor, his former secretary Saumya Chaurasia, MLA Devendra Yadav, retired IAS officer Anil Tuteja, and 4 senior IPS officers—Anand Chhabra, Abhishek Pallav, Arif Sheikh and Prashant Agarwal are being searched.

Crackdown on Mahadev Satta App scam

This action of the CBI is being linked to the Mahadev online Satta App scam. According to sources, the investigating agency has received important information about large-scale money laundering, hawala transactions and political patronage in this case. It is suspected that many political and administrative level people may be involved in this scam, against whom solid evidence is now being gathered.

According to CBI officials, this raid is being done to whiten the black money earned from illegal betting and to investigate the role of influential people involved in it. Many people have already been arrested in this case, and now the role of top political and administrative officials is also being investigated.

Politics intensifies on CBI raid, war of words between Congress and BJP

After this action of CBI, the politics of Chhattisgarh has heated up. Congress termed it a "political conspiracy", while BJP called it a "big step against corruption".

Former Chief Minister Bhupesh Baghel reacted sharply and said, "This raid has been done only to defame me and my close ones. Whenever elections come, the central government puts ED-CBI behind us. If I had done something wrong, action would have already been taken against me. But this is just an attempt to suppress the opposition." A senior leader of Chhattisgarh Congress said, "The BJP government is misusing the agencies. Ever since we started playing the role of a strong opposition, we are being targeted. The people of Chhattisgarh are watching everything and will give an answer in the coming time."

Meanwhile, Chhattisgarh Chief Minister Vishnudev Sai said, "If someone is innocent, he need not fear. Investigation agencies are working independently. Those who have committed corruption will now be caught by the law."

BJP state president Arun Sao has said that "Corruption was at its peak during the Congress government in Chhattisgarh. Liquor scam, Mahadev Satta app, illegal coal trade - there were scams everywhere. Now when the investigation is going on, the Congress is calling it a political conspiracy. The truth will soon come out."

Is internal factionalism in Congress also the reason?

There is a discussion in political circles that this raid may also be related to the factionalism going on within the Chhattisgarh Congress and the competition for the post of state president. Many leaders in the party are trying to increase their influence in the organization, and this action is being considered as a step affecting the internal power balance. However, at the moment no leader is openly commenting on this.

CBI investigation continues, big revelations possible

The CBI team is currently conducting a thorough investigation of the seized documents and digital data. Sources say that more big revelations can be made in the coming days, and some more big names can also come under the scanner.

This raid can prove to be a sea-borne earthquake in Chhattisgarh politics, as it can also affect the strategy of the Congress at the state and national level.

(Rajiv Khare Chief Bureau Chhattisgarh)