RAIPUR: In a breakthrough in the 250-ton iron scrap theft case from the Maharatna public sector SAIL’s flagship company Bhilai Steel Plant (BSP) in Chhattisgarh’s Durg district, the police arrested scrap trader and BJP leader Bhaskar Mudaliyar, alias Bachhu.
Following his arrest and subsequent judicial remand, the ruling BJP took swift disciplinary action, expelling him from the party for six years.
According to Durg police, Mudaliyar played a critical role in the illicit scrap trading network. Operating under the guise of a legitimate scrap trading business, he allegedly purchased stolen iron directly from the plant’s theft ring and facilitated its onward distribution.
Investigating officers revealed that key conspirators—identified as Sanjay Singh and Akash—named Mudaliyar during interrogation, disclosing that he bought the stolen material at rates ranging between Rs 34 and Rs 38 per kilogram.
Mudaliyar's trucks were reportedly utilised to transport the stolen iron from a raid site at Hathkhoj
Police spokesperson Satyaprakash Tiwari confirmed that 16 individuals, including mastermind Sanjay Singh, had previously been taken into custody. Mudaliyar is the 17th arrest in the organised criminal syndicate case after sufficient evidence linked his vehicles and warehouses directly to the racket.
Mudaliyar was taken into custody near his residence on Saturday. Hours after the news of his arrest broke, BJP Durg District President Purushottam Dewangan issued an order terminating Mudaliyar's primary party membership for six years.
The operation's audacity and seamless execution have left investigators questioning how such a clandestine, large-scale theft went undetected for years despite the round-the-clock deployment of a professional paramilitary force like the CISF alongside BSP’s internal management.
The Durg police suspected that the multi-million rupee racket operated under the guise of legitimate industrial waste management.
