Shortly after a man claimed to have travelled to Dubai based on advice from Chhattisgarh Chief Minister Bhupesh Baghel and alleged that he provided Rs 508 crore as “protection money” to politicians to prevent arrests, Baghel issued another statement denying the accusations.
Subham Soni, who claims ownership of the Mahadev app, made these allegations against Baghel in a video, which was shared by the BJP on its X account.
In his second statement released late on Sunday, Baghel said, “I wonder on what basis are all the responsible TV channels running the statement of an unknown person? Just because my name is in it? Is this not a case of defamation? It is no mystery why and how this video has come and it is also not difficult to understand that such a statement has been issued at the time of elections only to benefit the BJP”.
Baghel earlier accused the BJP of using central agencies like ED and IT for election purposes and tarnishing his image just before the Chhattisgarh Assembly elections.
In his latest statement, Baghel stated, “Everyone also understands that this is being done by weaponising the ED. In fact, the BJP is now contesting elections with the help of ED and is using ED to defame me”.
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“First of all, I do not know this person nor have I ever met him in the way he is claiming. I can’t say if he was a part of any gathering or function. Secondly, this person is claiming that he is the owner of ‘Mahadev App’. Surprisingly, even the ED, the agency which has been investigating this case for months, was not aware of this and till two days ago, the ED was calling him a manager,” he said.
“The people of Chhattisgarh understand everything. They will give a befitting reply to BJP and its ally ED in the elections.”
Meanwhile, restriction orders have been imposed on the Mahadev online betting platform along with 21 other illegal betting apps and websites by the Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology (MeitY).
Following the Mahadev app’s central role in a significant political dispute in the poll-bound state of Chhattisgarh, the Chhattisgarh Chief Minister remarked that the Centre has taken action and “finally woken up from its sleep” by banning the Mahadev app.
He expressed his frustration, stating that he had been questioning why the app was not banned for months. “I have been asking this for months as to why this app was not being banned. I had even said that maybe the greed of getting 28% GST has made the government not ban the app or the BJP and app operators have made a deal,” he said