India's Enforcement Directorate filed its first chargesheet in the Mahadev online betting app case on Friday, October 20, 2023, naming 14 accused including app promoter Sourabh Chandrakar and his associate Ravi Uppal1. The chargesheet was filed at a special Prevention of Money Laundering Act court in Raipur, the capital of Chhattisgarh1.
The agency told the court it has provisionally attached ₹41 crore worth of proceeds of crime, an amount it said could eventually cross ₹6,000 crore1. The 14 named in the first chargesheet are Sourabh Chandrakar, Ravi Uppal, Vikas Chapariya, Chandrabhushan Verma, Satish Chandrakar, Anil Dammani, Sunil Dammani, Vishal Ahuja, Dheeraj Ahuja, Punaram Verma, Shiv Kumar Verma, Yashoda Verma and Pawan Nathani1.
The ED has alleged that the app operated by franchising "panel/branches" to known associates on a 70-30 profit ratio, and used an online book betting application to enroll new users, create IDs and launder money through a layered web of benami bank accounts1. The app provided online casino and betting platforms, activities the report describes as illegal in India or permitted only under strict government supervision1. Chandrakar, who earlier worked as a juice vendor, and Uppal are described as the founders of the application, and both currently reside in Dubai1.
Reporting on the wider case says the platform enabled illegal gambling on games including poker, card games, badminton, tennis, football and cricket, and that operations generated about ₹200 crore daily2. The agency has consolidated at least seven FIRs filed by victims who lost money, with cases in Goa, Mumbai, Visakhapatnam, Ahmedabad and Chhattisgarh2. Raids on premises linked to hawala operators resulted in the attachment of ₹417 crore, and the agency identified seven hawala kingpins2.
Accounts of Chandrakar's wedding differ. One report says he spent ₹200 crore on the Dubai event1; another puts the figure at ₹250 crore and dates it to February in the UAE2. Both reports say Bollywood figures attended or were summoned over promotions and the success party, including Ranbir Kapoor, Huma Qureshi, Hina Khan and Kapil Sharma1.
"On October 20, the ED filed its first chargesheet in the case, naming 14 accused, including Chandrakar and Uppal."
What it means for players
The case concerns an app that offered casino and betting products to users in India, where such activity is illegal or permitted only under strict government supervision1. The ED's allegation that games were rigged to favor panel owners and produce heavy losses for players is central to the case2. Players who used the app and lost money are among those whose complaints form the consolidated FIRs2. The status of any funds held by users has not been reported.
What happens next
The chargesheet has been filed at the special PMLA court in Raipur; the next hearing date has not been reported1. Further chargesheets and the outcome of the celebrity summons have not been reported.
For background on the legal position, see Can I Gamble in India? and Gambling Laws in Asia: What Is Legal in 12 Jurisdictions.
