Mahadev betting case: ED attaches properties in Dubai and New Delhi

The Directorate of Enforcement (ED) on Wednesday said that it has attached 20 immovable properties having a fair market value of nearly Rs. 1700 Crore in its ongoing money-laundering investigation into the Mahadev online betting case.

These properties – 18 in Dubai and two in New Delhi – belong to Sourabh Chandrakar, one of the main promoters of the Mahadev Online Book betting application, and held in the name of entities controlled by him and his associates, the agency said in a press release. ED’s Raipur Zonal Office issued a Provisional Attachment Order (PAO) under the provisions of the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA), 2002.

According to the ED, the Mahadev Online Book operated as a large-scale international betting syndicate, which facilitated illegal betting through multiple online platforms and domain names such as Tiger Exchange, Gold365 and Laser247. The operation, stated the agency, was structured through a franchise-based network of “Panels” or “Branches” operated by associates across India, while the main promoters Sourabh Chandrakar and Ravi Uppal operated and controlled the betting syndicate from Dubai.

Both Chandrakar and Uppal hail from Chhattisgarh and the agency has in the past stated that several high ranking bureaucrat and politicians from the State are involved in the case.

The assets considered for attachment include high-value luxury villas, apartments in Dubai Hills Estate, (including Hills View, Fairway residency and Sidra), multiple high-end apartments in Business Bay and SLS Hotel & Residences as well as apartments in the iconic Burj Khalifa, the ED stated.

The money to invest in these properties was transferred outside India through hawala channels, cryptocurrency transactions and complex financial layering mechanisms, it added.

Explaining the entire chain, the ED statement claimed that the Proceeds of Crime (PoC) generated from commission of scheduled offences were systematically layered through thousands of mules or dummy bank accounts opened using KYC documents of unsuspecting individuals.

“Subsequently, the illicit funds were transferred outside India through hawala channels, cryptocurrency transactions and complex financial layering mechanisms, and were eventually invested in high-value movable and immovable assets in the UAE and India,” it added.

According to the ED, so far it has arrested 13 persons in the case and named 74 persons as accused. It has conducted search operations at more than 175 premises across the country in connection with this case.