In a significant follow-up to the ongoing investigation into the liquor scam, the Enforcement Directorate Raipur Zonal Office (ED-RPZO) has filed three Prosecution Complaints (PC) under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA), 2002. The complaints were submitted to the Honourable Special Court (PMLA) in Raipur, Chhattisgarh, on June 19, 2024, August 30 , 2024, and October 5, 2024, naming a total of nine individuals and entities as accused. Among those implicated are Anil Tuteja, Arvind Singh, Trilok Singh Dhillon, M/s Petrosun Bio Refineries Pvt Ltd, M/s Dhillon City Mall Pvt Ltd, Amit Singh, M/s Adip Agrotech Pvt Ltd, Anwar Dhebar, and Arunpati Tripathi. The court took cognisance of the complaints on October 5, 2024. ED-RPZO initiated its investigation after an FIR was filed by the Anti-Corruption Bureau (ACB) and the Economic Offences Wing (EOW) of Chhattisgarh, invoking various sections of the Indian Penal Code (IPC), 1860, and the Prevention of Corruption Act, 1988. The investigation revealed a massive liquor scam that occurred between 2019 and 2022, during which the accused generated Proceeds of Crime (POC) through systemic corruption.

 

These activities involved collecting illegal commissions from three distilleries for the sale of country liquor, illicitly producing and selling kacha liquor directly at government outlets, and earning commissions from FL-10A license holders for reselling foreign liquor to government warehouses in Chhattisgarh, yielding around 10% commission. ED-RPZO’s investigation has uncovered that the scam inflicted severe losses on the State Exchequer, while generating Proceeds of Crime exceeding Rs 2,100 crore for the beneficiaries of the syndicate. The agency has arrested key individuals involved, including former IAS officer Anil Tuteja, Arvind Singh, Trilok Singh Dhillon, Anwar Dhebar, and Arunpati Tripathi. Furthermore, assets worth approximately Rs 205.49 crore, comprising 18 movable and 161 immovable properties, have been attached. The Adjudicating Authority under the PMLA confirmed this attachment on October 7, 2024. The investigation remains ongoing, and ED-RPZO continues to press forward in dismantling the network behind this large-scale scam.