An official on special duty attached to Madhya Pradesh Deputy Chief Minister Jagdish Devda has been relieved of his responsibilities after surfacing allegations suggested he accepted a one crore rupee bribe from a liquor contractor during the 2024-25 period. Devda, who also holds the state excise portfolio, issued a directive on Friday to remove Deepam Raichura from the post while clarifying that Raichura was not serving as his OSD at the time the purported bribe was taken.
The accusations against Raichura stem from a circulated document purporting to be a statement given to the Enforcement Directorate by Mohit Gogia, an accused individual linked to a massive fraud case involving nightclubs and real estate across northern regions. Gogia, who has resided in Bhopal since 2023, was taken into custody by Delhi police in November 2025.
Addressing the situation, Devda stated that the issue came to light through media reports, prompting him to order an administrative inquiry. He noted that Raichura was functioning as an assistant excise officer in Bhopal during the relevant timeframe and was not associated with his office then, adding that Raichura was promptly stripped of his OSD duties to facilitate an objective and transparent investigation.
The circulating document details claims that an individual named Tanuja Sethi connected Gogia with Raichura, who was then serving as an assistant excise commissioner. Raichura allegedly directed Gogia to Deepak Dubey for handling operational matters and aided in acquiring two liquor vends in the TT Nagar area for the 2024-25 term under the name of Jaswant Kumar in exchange for the alleged payment.
According to the purported filing, half of the amount was delivered in cash at a residential flat on Hoshangabad Road and retrieved by Dubey, while the remaining half was deposited into the bank account of a hotel near the ISBT allegedly connected to an associate of Raichura. The statement further claims that a fraudulent fixed deposit receipt utilized as a bank guarantee for the contract was cleared with Raichura's assistance, alongside accusations of unlicensed liquor distribution at the outlets.
Gogia remains detained in connection with a multi-crore financial fraud investigation that has drawn scrutiny from both the Enforcement Directorate and the Income Tax Department through asset freezes and raids. The viral filing also references several local businessmen allegedly connected to influential bureaucrats and political figures, prompting Madhya Pradesh Congress president Jitu Patwari to demand a high-level probe into the corruption allegations.