New Delhi:

Sourabh Chandrakar – a primary accused in the Rs 5,000-crore Mahdev app betting case – will be extradited from the UAE and brought to India within a week, sources told NDTV Friday.

The extradition process – greenlit by UAE authorities after the External Affairs Ministry intervened on behalf of the probe agency – is in the final stages, sources also said.

Chandrakar – who operated a juice shop in Chhattisgarh’s Bhilai before rising to head an alleged international betting syndicate – has been in police custody in the UAE since December.

He was detained in Dubai – and put under house arrest – based on an Interpol Red Corner Notice. His associate Ravi Uppal had been detained, also in Dubai, a few weeks earlier.

According to the ED Chandrakar and Uppal ran the Mahadev network – which allegedly included a nexus of police, bureaucrats, and politicians to shield the illegal activities – from Dubai.

Call centres were opened across Malaysia, Thailand, and India, and also in the UAE, through which illegal betting was conducted by creating an entire ecosystem of interlinked mobile apps.

The ED has claimed the network consisted of around 4,000 ‘panel operators’, based across different states in India, with handling around 200 customers placing bets. Using this method, the two made at least Rs 200 crore daily, and managed to build a criminal empire in the UAE.

In September last year the ED seized assets worth Rs 417 crore from raids in 39 locations in Mumbai, Kolkata, and Bhopal; the network’s India operation was run with help from two other associates of Chandrakar – Anil and Sunil Dammani. The former was also tasked with paying off cops, bureaucrats, and politicians with the illegally acquired money to buy their silence.

One of those ‘protectors’ named by the ED is Chandra Bhushan Verma, a former senior member of the Chhattisgarh Police department, who was paid via money routed from the UAE.

The money was passed through a jeweller in the state capital of Raipur.

During interrogation Anil Dammani said his brother and he, over the previous 24-36 months, passed nearly Rs 65 crore in illegal money through their hawala network. His cut was Rs 6 lakh.

It also emerged that the police officer, Verma, had direct links with the then Chief Minister Bhupesh Baghel’s political advisor, Vinod Verma, which helped keep a tab on the cops.

This also led to the Congress leader becoming mired in a corruption case; this was after a man claiming to be the ‘real owner’ of the Mahadev app alleged he gave Mr Baghel Rs 508 crore.

The ED claimed a link between the man – Shubham Soni – and Bhupesh Baghel after it seized Rs 5.39 crore, in cash, from a hawala courier called Asim Das. In March – weeks before the Lok Sabha election – Chhattisgarh Police filed a FIR against Mr Baghel and 18 others.

Mr Baghel denied all charges, saying, “The FIR is politically motivated, I was deliberately implicated under pressure. It was done due to political vendetta.” He also claimed ED action against him was on instructions from the BJP; the ED reports to the central government.

He also claimed the Congress government had, in fact, identified Chandrakar and Uppal as the betting syndicate bosses and issued a notice, and that since they were not in state jurisdiction, it was the central government’s responsibility to track down and apprehend them.

The Chandrakar and Uppal (and Mahadev app) story reportedly began with the two becoming addicted to online gambling. This prompted the two to gather their savings for a gambling spree in Dubai. Once there they met a sheikh and a Pakistani national, and hatched this plan.

Sourabh Chandrakar also reportedly roped his brother, Satish, into the crime, putting him in charge of running four call centres and giving him a five per cent stake. Satish also had links to Tapan Sarkar – a noted gangster and drug mafia boss who is now on the run.

The Mahadev betting app dragnet has also hauled in Bollywood celebrities, among the most notable of whom is actor Ranbir Kapoor, who was accused of promoting a subsidiary app.

Actor Sahil Khan was arrested in connection with this case. He got bail in July.

Actor Tamannaah Bhatia has been summoned in connection with the promotion of a subsidiary app of Mahadev online gaming and betting application, sources said on Thursday.

The actor has been summoned by the Maharashtra cyber cell for allegedly promoting the viewing of the Indian Premier Matches (IPL) matches on the Fairplay betting app.

Ms Bhatia, who has acted in films like ‘Baahubali’ and ‘Lust Stories 2’, has been summoned as a witness and asked to appear before the cyber cell next week.

Some IPL matches were streamed illegally on the app, as per the complaint by a broadcaster.

The Maharashtra Cyber Cell has already recorded statements of singer Badshah and the managers of actors Sanjay Dutt and Jacqueline Fernandez in the case.

FairPlay Betting App

FairPlay is a betting exchange platform that offers a wide variety of sports and entertainment leisure gambling.

According to the app’s website, Cricket is the most loved sport on FairPlay, followed by Football and Tennis.

All sports matches are streamed live on FairPlay for the player’s ease to “watch and win at the same time”, the website said.

FairPlay’s Mahadev Betting App Connection

FairPlay is a subsidiary application of the Mahadev online gaming app, which also provides platforms for illegal betting in different live games like Cricket, Poker, Badminton, Tennis, Football card games, and chance games.

The Mahadev betting app made headlines last year when actors Ranbir Kapoor and Shraddha Kapoor, who have appeared in ads for the app, were summoned by the Enforcement Directorate (ED) for questioning.

The app came under the crosshairs of probe agencies after a Rs 200-crore wedding in the UAE in February last year, paid for entirely in cash.

Mahadev Online betting app was operated by Saurabh Chandrakar and Ravi Uppal from Dubai. Both of them belong to Chhattisgarh’s Bhilai.

The company used to get new customers by regularly creating new websites and closed groups on chat apps. They would often run paid advertisements on social media apps and try to get people to text their numbers to earn profits.

The ED, which has now been investigating the Mahadev app-linked money laundering case for more than a year, alleged in the past that its probe has shown involvement of various high-ranking politicians and bureaucrats from Chhattisgarh.

The projected proceeds of crime in this case are about Rs 6,000 crore, according to the ED.

Mumbai:

A key accused in the Mahadev betting app case, Mrugank Mishra, was detained at the Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj International Airport in Mumbai by security personnel on his arrival from Dubai, an official said on Monday.

Mishra is accused of helping Mahadev betting app promoters open hundreds of dubious bank accounts to divert money generated by the scam. His custody was later taken by a police team from Rajasthan, where he faces a cheating and forgery case related to the Mahadev app matter, the official said.

The 25-year-old was apprehended by security personnel at the airport after his arrival from Dubai on Saturday and handed over to the Sahar police in Mumbai. A team of the Pratapgarh police in Rajasthan came to Mumbai on Sunday and took his custody and placed him under arrest, he said.

Mishra is wanted in connection with a cheating and forgery case registered at the Pratapgarh police station related to the Mahadev betting app case and a look out circular (LOC) was issued against him, the official said.

An LoC is used by authorities to restrict the movement of a person accused of a crime.

Mishra allegedly helped Mahadev app promoters open hundreds of dubious bank accounts to divert money generated from betting. He opened these bank accounts in the name of common people after promising them that they will get money from various government schemes, he said.

Originally from Ratlam in Madhya Pradesh, Mishra was hiding in the Gulf city for the last few months, said the official.

The Enforcement Directorate (ED) has previously said the Mahadev Online Book App was used to enrol new users, create IDs and launder money through a layered web of benami bank accounts.

Large-scale hawala operations were done to siphon off the proceeds of betting to off-shore accounts, the ED had said, adding the company owning the app was running operations from Dubai.

(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)

New Delhi:

Gold bars, jewellery, and cash amounting to a total of Rs 417 crore is what the Enforcement Directorate recovered last month when they conducted searches at 39 locations linked to the Mahadev betting app. The app made headlines last week when Bollywood actors Ranbir Kapoor and Shraddha Kapoor, who have appeared in ads for the app, were summoned by the Enforcement Directorate for questioning.

The probe agency has made four arrests in the case, while the two masterminds and promoters of the app are based in Dubai.

The Mahadev app came under the crosshairs of probe agencies only after a Rs 200-crore wedding in the UAE this February, paid for entirely in cash.

Here’s a look at how the app managed to bypass rules and flummox authorities to amass a fortune:

Luring In New Customers

Mahadev Online betting app was operated by Saurabh Chandrakar and Ravi Uppal from Dubai. Both of them belong to Chhattisgarh’s Bhilai.

The company used to get new customers by regularly creating new websites and closed groups on chat apps. They would often run paid advertisements on social media apps and try to get people to text their numbers to earn profits. ED in its complaint said that the numbers could be contacted only through WhatsApp.

One of Mahadev’s customer care executives would then guide the person on creating a new User ID, after which they would be provided two numbers. One would be used to deposit money into their account and make bets, while the other one was for contacting customer care and encashing their accumulated points or money.  

All the accounts being used to collect or payout money were benami accounts which had been opened fraudulently.

All the bets and games that Mahadev ran would be rigged in a manner that the company would not lose money. Most new users would continue pooling money into their accounts after making profits initially, but in the long run a user would almost always end up incurring heavy losses.

Network Of Call Centres

Not only were the company’s illegal bank accounts spread out, but so were their call centres. Mahadev had opened hundreds of call centres across 4 countries – Malaysia, Thailand, India, and UAE – which would run 24*7 to create subsidiary apps and websites and interact with customers.

ED’s probe revealed that the betting app would witness transactions of thousands of crores on a daily basis. The company was making a profit of Rs 200 crore per day, the probe agency claimed.

Nexus Of Police, Bureaucrats And Politicians

The investigation has shown that the Mahadev Online Book App is run from a central head office in the United Arab Emirates, officials said. It operates by franchising “Panel/Branches” to their known associates on a 70-30 profit ratio, the agency said.

Large-scale hawala operations are done to siphon off the proceeds of betting to offshore accounts.

About 30 call centres were opened in major Indian cities, and these were being handled by Anil Dammani and Sunil Dammani, two very close associates of Saurabh Chandrakar and Ravi Uppal. Both the Dammani brothers have been arrested by the ED.

Police, politicians, and bureaucrats were given a stake in keeping this syndicate running.

One of Anil Dammani’s tasks was to send some of the money coming through Hawala to the police, politicians, and bureaucrats who were on board. This ensured that the app did not come under the radar of the probe agencies.

During interrogation, Anil Dammani said that in the last two years, he along with his brother, had done illegal transactions worth Rs 60 to 65 crore.

Bollywood Connection

Ranbir Kapoor, Shraddha Kapoor, Kapil Sharma, Hina Khan, and several other actors have been called in for questioning by the Enforcement Directorate. The reason: They performed at the Dubai wedding in February and were paid through hawala transactions.

ED said that 17 Bollywood celebrities were brought by a chartered plane to Dubai to perform at the wedding. All of them were allegedly paid crores of rupees but through hawala.

Ranbir Kapoor is also accused of promoting one of the apps that was run by the syndicate.

Authorities said that the actors are being questioned to help provide insights into the source of the money they had received from the betting app.