A total of 91 immovable properties worth Rs 152.31 crore belonged to Suryakant Tiwari (65 properties), Ms Saumya Chaurasia (21 properties), the deputy secretary to the chief minister of Chhattisgarh, Sameer Vishnoi IAS (5 properties), Sunil Agarwal, and others have been provisionally attached by the Directorate of Enforcement (ED) via Provisional Attachment Order No 02/2022 dated 09.12.2022. The assets include money, jewellery, apartments, coal washeries, and land parcels all of which are situated in the state of Chhattisgarh. The following are included in the linked lands:
63.38 acres of land used for agriculture in Hirri, Potiya, and Sevati, Durg. 10 acres of agricultural property in Rasni and Arang, Raipur. 12 acres of commercial land in Thakuraintola, Durg. Farmhouse, etc.
Accusatory evidence was gathered by ED during searches at more than 75 places, including the mining departments in the DC Offices of Korba and Raighad. About 100 people’s comments have been recorded by ED. The results of the ED investigation showed that policy changes were made as part of a larger conspiracy, and the Director of Mining issued a Government Order on 15.7.2020 to change the effective online system for issuing transport permits and replace it with a manual layer that required users of coal to submit NOC applications to State Mining officers. Armed with this government directive, the extortion, which started at a cost of Rs 25 per tonne of transported coal, picked up speed.
In order to extort money from Coal Transporters & Industrialists, Suryakant Tiwari was the principal go-between on the ground. His team was physically coordinating with lower-level government officials, Coal Transporters, and representatives of user firms. Since his employees were dispersed throughout the State, they kept detailed handwritten diaries of the incoming bribe amounts and their use for buying benami lands, paying bribes, paying for political expenses, etc. and shared them with Suryakant Tiwari. Suryakant Tiwari in turn kept detailed WhatsApp groups and excel sheets of each Coal Delivery Order and the extorted amounts. Without the knowledge and active involvement of the State apparatus, this type of systemic extortion would not have been conceivable.
The fact that it operated without interruption, without a single FIR, etc., and that it amassed almost Rs 500 crore in two years shows that all the accused were functioning together under the direction of a person or individuals at the highest level, in command and control of the State apparatus. The ED is looking into the full spectrum of transactions related to the extortion ring.
According to a probe by the ED, at least Rs. 540 crore have been extorted over the past two years. ED has examined countless handwritten notes from diaries. To support the diary entries, ED has conducted a thorough investigation that included analysing bank accounts, reviewing confiscated WhatsApp messages, recording statements, and more. The Extortion Syndicate’s key members, including Suryakant Tiwari, Saumya Chaurasia, Sameer Vishnoi, and others, utilised their families to construct benami assets, according to the modus operandi that the ED has uncovered. Minimum check amounts were utilised in land sales, and a sizable sum of money from the extortion fund was used to purchase the assets.
The majority of the time, the benamidaars lacked even the bare necessities of capital to conduct property transactions. Then, a number of people agreed to make modest, unsecured loans to them in exchange for cash in order to raise money for land purchases. In addition, several assets were sold to Sunil Agarwal following the IT raids on June 30, 2022, in a haste to escape IT/ED attachment, as he was not included in the IT searches. The interim attachment order has been granted in order to stop further alienation of the contaminated assets.
Earlier in this matter, on October 13, 2022, the ED detained Sameer Vishnoi, an IAS, Sunil Agarwal, and Laxmikant Tiwari. The ED detained Suryakant Tiwari on October 30,2022. ED detained Ms Saumya Chaurasia on 2.12.2022. Before the PMLA Special Court in Raipur, ED filed a prosecution charge on December 9 against Suryakant Tiwari, Sameer Vishnoi IAS, Laxmikant Tiwari, Sunil Agarwal, and others. ED is currently the charge of Ms Saumya Chaurasia. Additionally, the inquiry is ongoing.
