A special court here on Tuesday sen🍒t Chhattisgarh Congress MLA and former minister Kawasi Lakhma to 14-day judicial custody in an alleged liquor scam.
The special Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA) court remanded the Congress leader to judicial🤪 custody till February 4, his couns🐻el Faisal Rizvi said.
He was produced before the special PMLA court judge Atul Kumar Shrivastava after expiry of his six days of the custodial remand to🦄 the Enforcement Directorate (ED).
The central agency had arreste♛d him on January 15.
Lakhma is a six-time MLA from the Konta assembly seat and has served as the excise minister in the Congress government led by chief minister Bhupesh Baghel.
Following his arrest, the ED had said in a statement that Lakhma was aware of the complete affairs of the Excise Department, including liquor scam, yet he "did nothing" to stop an alleged liquor scam of more than Rs 2,100 crore that took place in the state during the previous governme🦹nt.
Lak꧃hma played an important role in policy change which led to the introduction of FL-10A licence in⛎ the state of Chhattisgarh, the ED said.
The FL-10A licence of the Chhattisgarhꦓ government allowed license holders to earn in the foreign liquor segment.
The former minister was an integral part of the syndicate and actively assisted the syndicate by manoeuvering process and procedures as per ♔their direction, it add𒊎ed.
The ED investigation revealed that Lakhma was receiving not less than Rs 2 crore per month out of proceeds of crime ꧑(POC) being generated out of theꦑ liquor scam, the agency has said.
The ED investigation revealed that the corruption in liquor scam which took pla🌼ce between 2019 an෴d 2022 was resorted to in multiple ways, the probe agency said.
Retired IAS officer Anil Tuteja, former Raipur Mayor Aijaz Dhebar's brother and businessman Anwar Dhebar, liquor baron Trilok Singh Dhillon, former Managing Director of the Chhattisgarh State Marketing Corp Ltd (CSMCL) Arun Pati Tripathi and Arvind Singh are alre💧ady in jai🍨l in the alleged liquor scam.
The central agency had on December 28 raided the properties of the former minister and his son in Raipur, Sukma and Dhamtari districts. It subsequently que🉐stioned Lakhma and his son.
