Overview

• The Supreme Court highlighted a 'pattern' of the Enforcement Directorate (ED) making allegations without substantiating them with adequate evidence in the ₹2,000-crore Chhattisgarh liquor scam case.
• The bench, led by Justices Abhay S. Oka and Ujjal Bhuyan, questioned the agency's failure to link the accused to companies allegedly involved in the scam, despite claiming they earned ₹40 crore in proceeds of crime.
• The court criticized the use of prolonged pre-trial detention as a form of punishment, noting that three chargesheets have already been filed without sufficient progress in the investigation.
• The ED alleges that a syndicate of government officials, private individuals, and political executives orchestrated the scam by accepting bribes from distillers to fix market share and sell liquor off the books.
• Former Chhattisgarh Chief Minister Bhupesh Baghel, whose family properties were raided, has denied the allegations, calling them politically motivated, while the next hearing is scheduled for May 9.