Overview
- Agrawal was taken into custody by the Chhattisgarh Economic Offences Wing for questioning in a multi-pronged probe that includes an alleged coal levy scheme and related liquor and paddy cases.
- Authorities say a diary seized from accused Suryakant Tiwari contains entries naming 'Congress Bhawan' and recording payments of crores of rupees that investigators allege were received by Agrawal at the state Congress office.
- Investigators are using documents, digital evidence and witness leads to question Agrawal about the source, delivery, receipt and use of the alleged funds, and they have already questioned his son, Vaibhav Agrawal.
- State and central agencies have linked the coal levy allegation to an alleged extortion of about Rs 540 crore between July 2020 and June 2022 and the EOW has said proceeds in connected matters could run much higher, based on its review of seized material.
- The Chhattisgarh Congress calls the actions politically motivated and has announced protests, while investigators say custodial interrogation will determine next legal steps and may influence parallel ED and CBI probes.