On 12th December (local time), Dubai Police arrested Ravi Uppal, one of the two prime accused in the Mahadev App case. Dubai Police may soon extradite him to India, where the Enforcement Directorate (ED) is investigating the case. Uppal is facing money laundering charges where kickbacks were allegedly paid to Congress leader and former Chhattisgarh Chief Minister Bhupesh Baghel.
The Mahadev App Money Laundering case involves transactions worth Rs 6,000 crore.
The arrest was made in response to the Red Corner notice issued on request of ED. The Indian officials have been informed about the arrest. The Dubai Police has reportedly expressed willingness to deport Uppal to India.
Another accused in the matter, Sourabh Chandrakar, is also in the UAE. He is reportedly the mastermind behind the illegal betting nexus. It is believed that he may get arrested soon and handed over to the Indian authorities. In October, Red Corner notices were issued against Chandrakar and Uppal after ED filed a case in a Special Court in Raipur and obtained a non-bailable warrant against both.
ED filed a charge sheet in the matter and got an open-ended non-bailable warrant against the accused. These two were required for the application of the Red Corner notice. Once ED fulfilled the criteria, the message was issued to seek extradition of the accused from the foreign jurisdiction.
Earlier, one of the promoters of the app, Shubham Soni, released a video and alleged to have paid Rs 500 crore as kickbacks to Congress politicians. The matter was raised extensively by the Bharatiya Janata Party during the Chhattisgarh Assembly Elections. Prime Minister Narendra Modi said in a statement, “Mahadev Ko Bhi Nahi Chhoda” (They did not spare Bhagwan Mahadev) during the campaign. It is believed that the Mahadev App Scam played a vital role in Congress’s defeat in the state.
On 3rd November, ED issued a press note that said that one of the couriers of Mahadev App, Asim Das, was arrested on 2nd November with Rs 5 crore cash. During questioning and from the forensic examination of the phone recovered from Das, the agency came to know that regular payments were made to former CM Baghel. So far, Rs 508 crore has been paid to Congress leaders. Das allegedly confessed that the cash found on him was meant for politician “Baghel”, and he was delivering the money on behalf of Uppar and Chandrakar. However, later, he withdrew his allegations.
Mahadev App Money Laundering Case
The Mahadev app is an illicit online betting platform that laundered the money it collected from players who aren’t in India. Four individuals, including primary accused Saurabh Chandrakar and Madhya Pradesh’s Ravi Uppal, developed the Mahadev betting software which progressively supplanted at least ten other similar illegal betting apps that were in widespread usage across the nation. The matter involves transactions worth Rs 6,000 crore.
A few of the apps that were formerly a part of the Mahadev betting fold are Lotus 365 and ReddyAnna. India, Sri Lanka, Nepal, and Pakistan are all connected to Mahadev Online Book (MOB) through its headquarters in the United Arab Emirates. OpIndia’s detailed coverage of the matter can be checked here.
