Raipur is emerging as a big market for gold and silver smuggling in central India, smuggled gold from other states including Orissa, Jharkhand, Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra and West Bengal is being spent in the market of Raipur. It is being told that most of the gold and silver reaches Raipur via West Bengal and Maharashtra, from where they are sold to bullion traders.
According to the information received, many famous big businessmen of the capital are involved in illegal gold trade, whose information was given by Vicky Baid, who was caught in Durg, to the Directorate of Revenue of DRI. In such a situation, more than 2 dozen bullion traders are under the radar of DRI’s investigation, which can be raided at any time. After raiding the house of Shantilal Baid, the operator of Mohini Jewelers, Rajnandgaon, the DRI team has arrested Shantilal’s son Vicky Baid and his two associates Sushil and Gautam and sent them to jail.
It is even reported that after Vicky’s statement, the DRI team has sent teams to the capital including Maharashtra, Orissa, Madhya Pradesh, Jharkhand and West Bengal, where raids can be conducted on traders who take illegal gold from Vicky. It is worth noting that 20 idols of gold and Ashta metal were stolen in an ancient temple of Karnataka, whose wires were also connected to Raipur and Durg of Chhattisgarh. However, the Karnataka Police had arrested three thieves from Orissa, Diptimai Mohanty, husband Santoshdas Mohanty and father Ghanshyam Das Mohanty. The police recovered 1.12 kg of gold, precious stones, worth about two lakh rupees, and goods worth three crore rupees from their village Chandshekharpur.
It is said that in this theft, bullion businessman Subhash Sancheti was also involved in this theft. After the statement of the accused, the CBI arrested Subhash Sancheti alias Raja. At the same time, if reliable sources are to be believed, Subhash is close to the capital’s big bullion businessman. The value of 20 ancient idols stolen in the ancient temple of Karnataka was said to be 24 hundred crores in the international market. It is being told that smuggling of precious idols is still going on along with gold and silver.
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