ED’s biggest action in Mahadev betting case – properties worth ₹ 1,700 crore of chief promoter Saurabh attached in Dubai

New Delhi, 26 March. The Enforcement Directorate (ED) has taken the biggest international action ever in the Mahadev online betting app case worth thousands of crores and the scope of its investigation has now reached the world’s tallest building Burj Khalifa. In this sequence, the investigating agency has attached the luxurious properties worth Rs 1,700 crore located in Dubai of Saurabh Chandrakar, the main promoter of the betting network.

Dubai including Burj Khalifa ‘posh‘ Chandrakar’s empire spread to areas

ED has seized properties in those areas of Dubai where it is the dream of the rich to live. The attached properties include a luxury flat in Burj Khalifa, apartments in VIP areas like Hills View, Fairway Residency and Sidra and high-end units located in business hubs and flats in SLS Hotel and Residences. According to the ED, these properties were purchased with ill-gotten gains from speculation and were being controlled through close associates like Vikas Chhaparia, Atul Arora and Nitin Tibrewal.

What is Mahadev betting app scam??

Actually, it was not just a betting app but a huge betting network, which was operated from Dubai by Saurabh Chandrakar and Ravi Uppal, residents of Bhilai, Chhattisgarh. On this platform, betting was done on poker, card games, cricket, badminton and even elections in India. Money was diverted through thousands of fake bank accounts and shell companies. The promoters kept 70-75% of the profits for themselves while the rest was given to the panel operators. Till now, there are allegations of sending illegal earnings of more than ₹5,000 crore abroad through Hawala.

This is how betting used to work ‘business‘

The ED investigation has revealed the modus operandi of this syndicate. This entire system was run on a franchise model based on ‘panel’ or ‘branch’, which were run by henchmen in different parts of India. The money raised from betting was earlier deposited into open bank accounts of illiterate or innocent people using KYC. Then from there it was sent to Dubai through cryptocurrency and hawala. This money was used to buy expensive lands and hotels in Dubai and India.

In this case till now across the country 175 Raids at more than 100 places

ED has so far raided more than 175 places across the country in this case. 13 people have been arrested in this case and a complaint has been filed against 74 accused in Raipur court. So far, movable and immovable assets worth ₹4,336 crore have been seized or frozen.

Key accused Ravi Uppal had fled from Dubai after being caught in December 23.

In December 2023, the key accused in this case, Ravi Uppal, was caught in Dubai, but he escaped from there. It is believed that he has taken citizenship of Vanuatu country. The Supreme Court has also taken a strict stand on this and directed the ED to find him.