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A day after the Enforcement Directorate alleged that Chhattisgarh Chief Minister Bhupesh Baghel received ₹508 crore from the promoters of the embattled Mahadev betting app, Union Minister Smriti Irani questioned whether Baghel was doubting his own government’s actions. The Mahadev app has been in the spotlight as several Bollywood personalities were recently questioned in connection with this Dubai-based platform. The ED claimed to have uncovered a web of benami bank accounts and linked ₹508 crore in funds to a person with the last name ‘Baghel’ for election purposes in the state.
In response to these allegations, Baghel criticized the accusations and said, “Can there be a bigger joke? If today I catch hold of someone and ask him to take PM Modi’s name, will they (ED) interrogate him? It has become very easy to tarnish someone’s reputation.”
Congress leader Jairam Ramesh, reacting to Smriti Irani’s press conference, alleged collusion between the ED and the BJP in Rajasthan and Chhattisgarh.
जब ED के बचाव में भाजपा सुबह-सुबह खुल कर आ जाए तो उनकी मिलीभगत, जुगलबंदी और एजेंसियों का छत्तीसगढ़ और राजस्थान में राजनीतिक दुरूपयोग स्पष्ट हो जाता है। चुनाव आयोग को इसका संज्ञान लेना चाहिए।
भरोसा बरकरार,
फिर एक बार कांग्रेस सरकार…— Jairam Ramesh (@Jairam_Ramesh) November 4, 2023
Smriti Irani countered by questioning who was conspiring against Bhupesh Baghel, pointing out that FIRs related to the Mahadev app were filed in Chhattisgarh and Andhra Pradesh, both of which are not BJP-ruled states. She accused the Congress of contesting the election through Hawala operators and claimed that there was substantial evidence to support her assertions.
Chhattisgarh Deputy Chief Minister TS Singh Deo responded by challenging Smriti Irani to present any evidence she might have. He suggested that her allegations were baseless and politically motivated, asserting that the timing of such accusations just before elections was not unexpected. He also criticized the ED’s press release for lacking concrete facts.
