Sourabh Chandrakar, one of the promoters associated with the Mahadev online betting app, has been placed under "house detention" in Dubai, as per official sources on Wednesday. Meanwhile, Indian investigative agencies, including the Enforcement Directorate (ED), have been notified and are actively engaged in diplomatic efforts to facilitate his deportation. This development follows the recent detention of Ravi Uppal, another promoter of the betting and gaming app, in Dubai on an Interpol-issued red notice initiated by the ED.
Chandrakar's current location in Dubai has been communicated to the federal agency, and he is reportedly under "house detention." Indian authorities are leveraging diplomatic channels to secure the deportation or extradition of both individuals, crucial figures in the money laundering and police inquiry into the alleged illicit operations of the 'Mahadev Book Online' app, which also has political connections in Chhattisgarh and elsewhere.
The ED is anticipated to file a supplementary charge sheet in the money laundering case, adding to the legal proceedings initiated in November, where individuals such as Asim Das and police constable Bheem Yadav were arrested. The agency's initial charge sheet, filed before a special Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA) court in Raipur, had implicated Chandrakar, Uppal, and others.
Details in the charge sheet highlighted that Sourabh Chandrakar, before his relocation to Dubai in 2019, operated a juice shop named 'juice factory' alongside his brother in Bhilai town, Chhattisgarh. The ED contended that Chandrakar's extravagant wedding in Ras Al Khaimah, UAE, in February 2023, costing around Rs 200 crore in cash, was funded by the proceeds of crime linked to the Mahadev betting app.
Uppal's recent detention is part of the ongoing investigations into the money laundering case associated with alleged illegal betting through online apps. Both individuals, now in Dubai, are subjects of a red notice issued by Interpol, based on the ED's request and a court-issued non-bailable warrant.
The projected proceeds of crime in this case are estimated at about Rs 6,000 crore, and the investigation has revealed the Mahadev Online Book App's operation from a central head office in the UAE. The app allegedly engages in franchising "Panel/Branches" to associates and large-scale hawala operations are conducted to channel betting proceeds offshore. The ED contends that significant cash expenditures are also made in India for advertising betting websites and attracting new users and franchise seekers. The Mahadev online book betting application, run by promoters from Bhilai in Chhattisgarh, is accused of orchestrating online platforms to facilitate illegal betting activities.
