Raipur    . Taking a big action in Chhattisgarh's much talked about liquor scam, the Anti-Corruption Bureau (ACB) has arrested absconding accused Vijay Bhatia from Delhi. Bhatia is being brought to Chhattisgarh for questioning.

Bhatia is considered a close businessman of former Chief Minister Bhupesh Baghel and was already a suspect in many investigations of EOW, ACB and ED. Earlier, his Nehru Nagar, Durg locations were raided thrice but he absconded. This time he was caught from Delhi.

Raids on 5 locations simultaneously in Durg-Bhilai
From Sunday morning, a joint team of EOW and ACB took action simultaneously at five locations in Durg-Bhilai. Among these, a raid was also conducted at the house of Vijay Bhatia's manager Santosh Ramteke. Ramteke is currently present in Delhi. Teams are engaged in investigating documents and digital evidence related to the liquor scam.

21 accused in ED's chargesheet
ED has included the names of 21 accused in its chargesheet, which includes the names of former Excise Minister Kawasi Lakhma, businessman Anwar Dhebar, former IAS officer Anil Tuteja, Trilok Singh Dhillon, Bhatia Wine Merchant, Siddharth Singhania. At the same time, Chhattisgarh Distiller, Welcome Distiller, Om Sai Breweries, Top Security, Dishita Venture companies are also on the target. 

ED raided the hideouts of Lakhma and his family on 28 December 2024. On January 15, 2025, he was arrested and sent to Raipur Central Jail.

Scam happened during Bhupesh government
According to the ED report, this liquor scam took place during the tenure of Bhupesh Baghel government, in which the then Excise Department officer AP Tripathi, IAS Anil Tuteja and businessman Anwar Dhebar together benefited crores of rupees from the illegal liquor distribution network.

The arrest of Vijay Bhatia has brought a new twist in the investigation of the scam. The ACB and EOW teams are now in the final stages of exposing the scam network. More big names are likely to be nabbed in the coming days.