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.

New Delhi:

The lawyer for the Enforcement Directorate has said that Bollywood actor Ranbir Kapoor has requested one week time to appear before the ED regarding the summon issued to him in connection with the Mahadev betting app case.

Speaking to ANI, ED lawyer Saurabh Pandey said, “Mahadev app is a betting portal and it is a case of money laundering. Raipur ED office started the probe and four people were arrested. As the probe proceeded further, the names of many people came to light, and we issued summons to a few people. Bollywood actor Ranbir Kapoor’s name has also come up so we issued a summon under section 50 of the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA), he didn’t appear today but through email, he requested one week time. We will see what needs to be done further.”

“The procedure is that if one does not appear on the called date then we issue the summon again,” he added.

According to sources Ranbir Kapoor had allegedly carried out promotional activities for the Mahadev betting app. In this case, ED also suspects several other A-lister celebrities and certain sports personalities who promoted the app

A lavish wedding held this February in the United Arab Emirates caught the attention of the Enforcement Directorate as the entire money-around Rs 200 crore- spent on the bash was paid entirely in cash.

At his wedding held in Ras Al-Khaimah, Sourabh Chandrakar, one of the promoters of the Mahadev Online Book Betting app, hired private jets to ferry family members from Nagpur to the UAE and paid celebrities from the Indian film industry to perform, according to the ED.

The Enforcement Directorate (ED) has also summoned comedian Kapil Sharma and actor Huma Qureshi in connection with the Mahadev betting app case.

Mahadev Online Book Betting app is an umbrella syndicate arranging online platforms for enabling illegal betting websites to enrol new users, create user IDs and the laundering of money through a layered web of benami bank accounts.

ED had stated that it has successfully identified other major players involved in the money laundering operations of the Mahadev online booking app.

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

Actor Ranbir Kapoor has been summoned by the Enforcement Directorate in a case involving an online gaming app. He has been asked to be present before the agency on Friday. 

Here’s what we know about this developing story so far:

 – Ranbir Kapoor appeared in the promotions for the Mahadev Online Book App. The ED has claimed that he was given a large amount of money in exchange, which was from the proceeds of a crime. 

– The agency said 12 other actors, from Bollywood and Tollywood, are on the agency’s radar. At least 100 influencers are also under the scanner and all of these people may be summoned as part of the investigation. 

– The promoters hail from Bhilai in Chhattisgarh but the app was being run from the company’s headquarters in UAE. It has call centres in Sri Lanka, Nepal and UAE.

– The agency claimed the Mahadev app is part of an umbrella syndicate arranging online platforms for illegal betting websites to enrol new users, create user IDs and launder money through a layered web of benami bank accounts.  

– An ED official said the promoters ran 4-5 such apps, which have been raking in profits of Rs 200 crore every day. 

Actor Ranbir Kapoor has been summoned by the Enforcement Directorate (ED) in connection with a case involving the Mahadev Gaming App. The agency is investigating alleged money laundering in the online betting app, which is illegal in India, that is being run by two UAE-based kingpins. Mr Kapoor appeared in a few advertisements promoting the platform. The ED has conducted multiple raids across many cities to probe the flow of money through the Mahadev Gaming app. ED has said that it is an umbrella syndicate that promotes betting.

What is the Mahadev Gaming app?

It provides platforms for illegal betting in different live games like Poker, card games, chance games, badminton, tennis, football as well as betting on cricket, along with the provision for playing a number of card games like Teen Patti (a card game), Poker, Dragon Tiger, and virtual cricket games.

The people who maintain Mahadev app operate a number of closed groups on various instant messaging platforms. They also run 4-5 similar platforms and reportedly make a profit of Rs 200 crore every day.

The modus operandi

They advertise contact number over websites and lure people to play to earn profits. Such numbers can only be contacted on platforms like WhatsApp.

Once a user contacts the given number, he/she will be provided two separate contact numbers. One of them is for depositing money and collecting points in user IDs used to make bets, while the second number is for contacting the website to encash the accumulated points in the designated IDs.

The IDs are generally created on multiple website.

All the games are rigged in a manner that overall the panel owners will not lose money and despite initial profits to the user, ultimately, they are likely to lose huge sums.

Who are the promoters of the Mahadev App?

Sourabh Chandrakar and Ravi Uppal from Chhattisgarh’s Bhilai are the main promoters of Mahadev app and are running their operations from Dubai.

The app is operated by several “panel/branches that are sold by Chandrakar and Uppal like a small franchise.

Payments are done by bank accounts that are either opened fraudulently or are loaned for commission.

There was report a few weeks ago that Chandrakar spent Rs 200 crore on his wedding in Dubai. He reportedly leased a private aircraft to fly his family and friends from Nagpur to Dubai for the wedding.

ED raids against Mahadev App

The agency raided the founders of the Mahadev Gambling App’s offices in many cities, including Kolkata, Bhopal, and Mumbai, and seized assets worth crores.

It also searched the premises of Chief Minister Bhupesh Baghel’s political adviser and two Officers on Special Duty (OSDs) alleging that “high ranking officials connected with the Chief Minister’s Office” in Chhattisgarh received kickbacks to allow an illegal gaming app to run its operations in the state.