ED files first chargesheet in Mahadev betting app case

PTI, Oct 21, 2023, 4:55 PM IST

The Enforcement Directorate (ED) has filed its first chargesheet in connection with its money laundering investigation into the Mahadev betting app case that surfaced in Chhattisgarh recently, sources said.

The prosecution complaint was filed by the federal probe agency before the special Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA) court in Raipur on Friday, official sources said.

The ED has named 14 persons in the prosecution complaint, including alleged main promoters of the Mahadev Book app Sourabh Chandrakar and Ravi Uppal besides Vikas Chhapariya, Chandrabhushan Verma, Satish Chandrakar, Anil Dammani, Sunil Dammani, Vishal Ahuja, Dheeraj Ahuja, Srijan Associates through Punaram Verma, Shiv Kumar Verma, Punaram Verma Shiv Kumar Verma, Yashoda Verma, Pawan Nathani, they said.

Sourabh Chandrakar and Ravi Uppal had denied any wrongdoing.

The operative part of the chargesheet runs into 197 pages, while the annexures add about 8,800 more pages.

The projected proceeds of the alleged crime in this case is about Rs 6,000 crore, according to the sources.

The court is expected to take the cognisance of the chargesheet on the next hearing scheduled for November 25, they said.

The ED had earlier said its investigation has revealed Mahadev Book is run from a central head office in the UAE.

It operates by franchising “panel/branches” to their known associates on 70-30 per cent profit ratio, it had said.

“Large scale hawala operations are done to siphon off the proceeds of betting to off-shore accounts. Large transactions in cash are also being done in India for advertising betting websites and self-aggrandisement necessary to attract new users and franchise (panel) seekers,” the agency said.