Actor Ranbir Kapoor has been summoned by the Enforcement Directorate (ED) in connection with a case involving the Mahadev Gaming App. The ED suspects money laundering in the Mahadev Gaming App, an online betting app run by two UAE-based kingpins who hail from Chattisgarh in India. But why has Ranbir Kapoor been summoned, and what is the Mahadev Gaming App about?
Srishti B Dutta Updated: Oct 05, 2023, 13:15 IST
Actor Ranbir Kapoor has been summoned by the Enforcement Directorate (ED) in connection with a case involving the Mahadev Gaming App.
The ED suspects money laundering in the Mahadev Gaming App, an online betting app run by two UAE-based kingpins who hail from Chattisgarh in India.
ED has been conducting searches against the money laundering networks linked with Mahadev App at 39 locations across cities such as Kolkata, Bhopal and Mumbai and has retrieved many incriminating evidence.
But why has Ranbir Kapoor been summoned, and what is the Mahadev Gaming App about?
Why has Ranbir Kapoor been summoned?
The ED has summoned Ranbir Kapoor since he has appeared in a few advertisements promoting the platform. He is set to appear at the ED’s Raipur office on October 6.
Ranbir Kapoor
ED officials are trying to determine when the actor began promoting the app, the money he received for these promotions, and the payment method.
Sources told PTI that several other A-list celebrities and certain sports personalities also promoted the app and may be summoned later.
What is the Mahadev betting scam?
The Enforcement Directorate is investigating the money laundering operations of the Mahadev Online Book app, which may be to the tune of Rs 5,000 crore, Indian Express reported.
Mahadev Online Book Betting application is an umbrella syndicate arranging online platforms for enabling illegal betting websites. Mahadev app founders are also running 4-5 similar apps, which are being operated from the UAE.
Mahadev app/ ET
Police has said that the main app began its operations in 2017, but its reach among users saw a massive increase during the pandemic in 2020.
The company allegedly used the online betting application to enroll new users, create user IDs and launder money through a layered web of benami bank accounts, officials said.
The ED has said that large-scale hawala operations are being done to siphon off the betting proceeds to off-shore accounts.
The scam’s monetary value may rise beyond Rs 5,000 crore as the investigation progresses.
Where does the Company operate from, and Who are the owners?
The promoters hail from Bhilai in Chhattisgarh, while the company operates from Dubai.
Sourabh Chandrakar, 28, and Ravi Uppal, 43, have been named as the two main promoters of the app.
How did investigations into the scam begin?
An investigation was prompted following the 28-year-old Sourabh Chandrakar’s lavish wedding in the UAE, which led investigators to unravel the details of alleged hawala operations and their connections in the UAE and Pakistan.
Chandrakar, who got married in February, is accused of spending Rs 200 crore on his wedding in Ras Al Khaimah, Dubai.
Mahadev betting app scam/ X
Expenditure on private jet and hotel accommodation arrangements for guests stood at Rs 42 crore.
The ED also claimed that Chandrakar leased a private aircraft to fly his family and friends from Nagpur to Dubai for the wedding.
Apart from this, Saurabh Chandrakar paid Rs 142 crore to an event management company. It is reported that all payments were made in cash.
Further, media reports have stated that he invited various Bollywood artists to perform at the wedding. Bollywood celebrities like Tiger Shroff, Sunny Leone, Vishal Dadlani, Atif Aslam, Rahat Fateh Ali Khan, Nushrratt Bharuccha, Kriti Kharbanda, Bharti Singh and Krushna Abhishek were present at the wedding.
The ED investigating money laundering charges in connection with the Mahadev Online Book app had arrested four accused, including the chief liaisoner of the betting syndicate, which the probe agency alleged was organising bribes to senior government functionaries as ‘protection money’.
Mahadev betting app scam/ X
The ED has also said that it has successfully identified other major players involved in the money laundering related to the Mahadev online betting app.
Officials have also said that Chandrakar is associated with the D-company. Reportedly, he also flaunted his connection to Dawood Ibrahim.
The term D-Company is used to refer to one of Mumbai underworld’s organized crime syndicate founded and controlled by Dawood Ibrahim, an Indian crime boss, drug dealer and wanted terrorist.
It has been designated as a Global Terrorist Organization by the United States Department of the Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control.
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