NEW DELHI: The Enforcement Directorate Monday performed fresh searches in Chhattisgarh on the properties of at least eight senior Congress leaders near primary minister Bhupesh Baghel in connection with its ongoing money laundering case in the supposed unlawful coal levy collection worth over Rs 500 crore.

The facilities browsed consist of those connected to Congress treasurer in the state Ramgopal Agrawal, celebration spokesperson R P Singh and MLA Devendra Yadav.Chhattisgarh: Congress employees phase demonstration after ED raids numerous leaders in RaipurThe searches came simply a few days ahead of the scheduled Congress plenary session to be attended by the celebrations central leadership, consisting of Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge and former presidents Sonia Gandhi and Rahul Gandhi.

The agency has actually so far arrested 9 persons in the case, consisting of Saumya Chaurasia, a deputy secretary in Baghels workplace, and attached assets worth Rs 170 crore as profits of criminal offense from the unlawful coal levy scam.The attached properties, according to ED, are benami properties of over Rs 7 crore of Chaurasia and those belonging to business person Suryakant Tiwari and IAS officer Sameer Vishnoi, to name a few.

All the nine accused are still in judicial custody while the firm has expanded its investigation to other senior Congress leaders in the state for their declared involvement.These are politically instigated: Chhattisgarh CM on ED raids on Congress leaders Investigation has developed that profits of crime worth Rs 540 crore were acquired in this extortion racket.

A systemic network of extortion was set up with the active connivance and involvement of a large number of bureaucrats and higher powers, the ED stated recently, meaning questioning Congress political leaders and ministers to unearth the entire range of the extortion racket .

Beginning early Monday, ED groups raided a minimum of a dozen properties of Congress MLAs Devendra Yadav (Durg) and Chandradev Rai (Bilaigarh), celebration leader Ramgopal Agrawal, chairperson of Karmakar Mandal Sunny Agrawal, Congress representative R P Singh, housing board director Vinod Tiwari and chairperson of Chhattisgarh Mineral Development Corporation, Girish Dewangan.

Searches are carried out intentionally to damage Congress, Sachin Pilot on ED raidsSearches were all at once performed on numerous addresses in Bhilai-Durg and Raipur.

The bro of Congress MLA Devendra Yadav, who celebrated his birthday on Sunday, was likewise raided.Congress staged a demonstration by singing bhajans in front of Congress treasurer Ramgopal Agrawals home where ED sleuths are carrying out search operations.Last week, ED had gone to the Korba collectors office to question mining department authorities.

Cases under PMLA in the coal scam are currently in court against some bureaucrats and businessmen.