New Delhi: Former Chhattisgarh Chief Minister Bhupesh Baghel alleged on Sunday that the FIR filed against him in the Mahadev online betting case by the state's Economic Offence Wing (EOW) was politically motivated and was done to defame him.
Baghel, a Congress MLA contesting from the Rajnandgaon Lok Sabha seat, claimed that the BJP aimed to tarnish his image ahead of the upcoming Lok Sabha elections, reported news agency PTI.
The state's EOW registered a case against Baghel and 18 others in the alleged Mahadev online betting scam based on a probe report submitted by the Enforcement Directorate (ED).
Addressing a press conference, Baghel said, "The FIR was registered by the EOW on March 4 then why it was not uploaded in its website and made public? The FIR was made public on Sunday after a newspaper carried a report on this."
"In the FIR copy, my name was mentioned as accused at the 6th place. The content of the FIR in which names of the promoters of the app has been mentioned, does not have my name. The FIR is politically motivated, I was deliberately implicated under pressure. It was done due to political vendetta," he alleged.
According to Baghel, the previous Congress government had taken strict measures against gambling during his tenure, with numerous arrests made in connection with the Mahadev app.
He said that his government had registered 72 FIRs in connection with the Mahadev app since 2022 and around 450 people were arrested.
The previous Congress government in the state had issued a lookout circular against Saurabh Chandrakar and Ravi Uppal, promoters of the Mahadev betting app and it was the responsibility of the Central government to ensure their arrest, he said.
"They were not arrested and during last assembly polls, a twist was brought to the story with entry of Shubham Soni. Till then there were only two promoters of the app Saurabh Chandrakar and Ravi Uppal. Suddenly video of Soni was released from BJP office, not from the ED office, in which Soni claims he is the app's promoter," Baghel said.
He further alleged, "Then a person Asim Das Asim was arrested (in November) along with a huge cash pile in a car. The four-wheeler seized from his possession belonged to the brother of a BJP leader Amar Agrawal (now an MLA and former minister). Even pictures of Das with incumbent assembly speaker and former assembly speaker Premprakash Pandey surfaced."
Moreover, Baghel accused the BJP of orchestrating the situation, alleging connections between the app's promoters and BJP leaders. He criticized the lack of action against the app's promoters and questioned the government's commitment to addressing the issue.
Baghel further claimed that his candidacy in Rajnandgaon had unnerved the BJP, leading to his false implication in the case.
"Why have the promoters of Mahadev App not been arrested yet. Is there any deal? The BJP is anticipating massive loss in Rajnandgaon as well as in the entire state after I was made candidate from Rajnandgaon. Therefore I was falsely framed in the Mahdev app case to impact elections," he added.
"I am neither scared nor will step back with such moves," he stated.