Raipur, Nov 2 (PTI) Chhattisgarh Chief Minister Vishnu Deo Sai on Monday said the extradition of Sourabh Chandrakar, the alleged kingpin of the Rs 6,000-crore Mahadev betting app scam, is a major success and his questioning would reveal who took "protection money" from the syndicate.
Notably, senior Congress leader and Chhattisgarh's former chief minister Bhupesh Baghel, app promoters Ravi Uppal, Sourabh Chandrakar, Shubham Soni and Anil Kumar Agrawal, along with 14 others, have been named as accused in an FIR registered by the state's Economic Offences Wing (EOW) in connection with the scam.
Talking to reporters at Swami Vivekananda Airport in Raipur before leaving for Delhi, CM Sai thanked the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) and other central agencies for bringing Chandrakar, a native of the state's Durg district, back to India from Oman.
"The CBI had been making continuous efforts to bring Sourabh Chandrakar, the main accused in the Mahadev betting app case, back to India from abroad so that information related to the case could be obtained from him. His questioning will reveal who all were receiving protection money," Sai said.
This is a major success, he added.
A CBI team deputed to Oman escorted Chandrakar back to India. He will be produced before a special court in Raipur later in the day, officials earlier said.
Chandrakar was wanted in two CBI cases and one Enforcement Directorate (ED) case, in which charge sheets have already been filed, the central agency said.
Acting on a Red Corner Notice issued against him, the Royal Oman Police located and detained Chandrakar, following which the CBI and ED sent formal extradition requests to Oman along with evidence gathered against him, it said.
Investigations showed that Mahadev Online Book was among the country's largest illegal online betting syndicates, allegedly operated from outside India through a network of franchised panels and branches, according to the CBI.
The platform allegedly facilitated betting on cricket, football, card games and other events, enrolling users and collecting stakes through its network across the country, it alleged.
Proceeds generated through illegal betting were routed through numerous mule bank accounts, layered through multiple transactions and transferred abroad through hawala channels, the agency said.
"Investigations further revealed that part of the proceeds was used to pay protection money to public servants so that the syndicate could operate without any hindrance," it claimed.
The ED has been investigating the alleged money laundering linked to the Mahadev app after the case was unearthed during the previous Bhupesh Baghel-led Congress government in Chhattisgarh.
The agency had earlier claimed that its probe indicated the involvement of several high-ranking politicians and bureaucrats from Chhattisgarh.
After the BJP government came to power in Chhattisgarh, the EOW registered an FIR in March 2024 based on an ED report, invoking charges of criminal conspiracy, cheating and provisions of the Prevention of Corruption Act.
Former CM Bhupesh Baghel, app promoters Ravi Uppal, Sourabh Chandrakar, Shubham Soni and Anil Kumar Agrawal, along with 14 others, were named as accused in the FIR.
In August 2024, the state government handed over 70 cases related to the alleged betting app scam registered at various police stations, along with one EOW case, to the CBI.
The ED has estimated the proceeds of crime in the alleged scam at around Rs 6,000 crore and attached several properties in India and abroad linked to the syndicate.
Baghel had earlier termed the EOW's FIR "politically motivated".
(This story has not been edited by THE WEEK and is auto-generated from PTI)