As the investigation continues, it is learned that Sourabh Chandrakar, the co-founder of the Mahadev gaming app, paid a whopping Rs 200 crore, all in cash, for his extravagant wedding in the UAE in February. Celebs performed at the event and relatives flew in from India in private jets
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A gambling app, a star-studded wedding, and assets worth crores – Sourabh Chandrakar has led a luxurious life in Dubai.
However, this has now attracted the attention of Indian law enforcement.
As the investigation goes on, it is discovered that the Dubai-based money laundering mastermind paid all of the cash for his Rs 200 crore wedding in the United Arab Emirates this past February.
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It was this wedding that brought the Mahadev Online Book app on the crosshairs of probe agencies.
Let’s take a look how.
The extravagant wedding
One of the online betting platform’s promoters, Chandrakar, was married in Ras Al-Khaimah in February.
A Mumbai-based events company organised the extravagant event, and family members were flown down in private jets, according to NDTV.
Celebrities such as Vishal Dadlani, Tiger Shroff, Atif Aslam, Sunny Leone, Neha Kakkar, Ali Asgar, Bharti Singh, Bhagyashree, Pulkit Samrat, Elli Avram, and Rahat Fateh Ali Khan.
Chandrakar spent a total of Rs 200 crore on his wedding, of which Rs 100 crore went to the Malad-based event company.
The Enforcement Directorate was alerted because all of this was paid in cash.
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He is spending 200 cr just on wedding. Bollywood stars are attending his wedding.
This is mohabbat ki dukan of @INCChhattisgarh which is only limited for their friends!! pic.twitter.com/YMQ17WUXD2
— Trupti Garg (@garg_trupti) September 16, 2023
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The ED said in a statement dated 15 September, “In February 2023, Sourabh Chandrakar got married at RAK, UAE, and for this marriage ceremony, the promoters of Mahadev APP spent around Rs 200 Crore in Cash.”
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“Private jets were hired to ferry family members from Nagpur to UAE. Celebrities were hired to perform in the marriage. Wedding planners, dancers, decorators etc were hired from Mumbai and hawala channels were used to make payments in cash,” the agency said, as per Indian Express.
The probe agency claimed that according to digital evidence, the event management company received Rs. 112 crore via hawala transactions, and Rs. 42 crore in cash in UAE currency was used to make hotel reservations.
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Ranbir Kapoor summoned by ED
According to PTI, Kapoor has been asked to appear at the agency’s Raipur office on 6 October. The actor was allegedly involved in advertising the Mahadev app, according to the ED investigation.
He is believed to have endorsed for the betting platform and to have even been paid for it, with the money reportedly coming from the collections through the scam.
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According to reports, the Brahmastra actor is said to be among the highest-paid celebs who were paid by the app promoters. Even social media ads and advertisements for the Mahadev app have featured Kapoor.
A total of 14 celebs and over 100 influencers who attended the wedding are reportedly under the ED scanner. They are likely to be summoned as part of the probe.
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Some of the actors attended or performed at Chandrakar’s wedding in February this year and the company’s success party in September last year.
The arrest
The ED, which started its investigation earlier this year, arrested four people in connection with the case in late August. These include businessmen Sunil Dammani and Anil Dammani, assistant sub-inspector (ASI), Chandra Bhushan Verma of the Chhattisgarh Police, and Satish Chandrakar.
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The ED sources alleged that ASI Verma played a big role in protecting the main accused and is said to have received Rs 65 crore in cash from promoters of the app.
“Sourabh Chandrakar and Ravi Uppal have created an empire for themselves in the UAE. The sudden and illegal riches are being openly flaunted by them,” the ED said in a statement on Friday.
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“Large scale hawala operations are done to siphon off the proceeds of betting to offshore accounts. Large expenditure in cash is also being done in India for advertising of betting websites and self-grandizement necessary to attract new Users and franchise (panel) seekers,” it alleged, according to NDTV.
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ED raids
The ED has so far conducted searches at 39 locations and seized illegal assets worth Rs 417 crore, the central agency said.
The agency 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 Chandigarh received kickbacks to allow an illegal gaming app to run its operations in the state, according to the Delhi based news channel.
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ED has conducted searches against the money laundering networks linked with Mahadev APP in cities like Kolkata, Bhopal, Mumbai etc and retrieved large amount of incriminating evidences and has frozen/seized proceeds of crime worth Rs 417 Crore. pic.twitter.com/GXHWCmKOuY
— ED (@dir_ed) September 15, 2023
When the ED searched the locations of those connected to the event management company, it found evidence of hawala transactions and unaccounted funds, the agency claimed.
“It is found that many celebrities have been endorsing these betting entities and performing at their functions in return for hefty fees layered through dubious transactions, but ultimately paid from the proceeds of online betting,” the statement added.
Additionally, searches were carried out on the premises of the travel agency that had made reservations for the Mahadev app promoters, their families, and celebs.
M/s Rapid Travels is run by Dheeraj Ahuja and Vishal Ahuja. The ED said, “The illicit cash earnings from the betting panels were clearly deposited by Ahuja brothers with main ticket providers, and the wallet balance was used to book domestic and international tickets.”
The illegal booking app
According to the ED, Mahadev Online Booking presents an illegal betting platform through various games like poker, card games, chance games, tennis, cricket, badminton, football and others. It also allows people to play games like Teen Patti, poker, Dragon Tiger and virtual cricket.
However, the business continued by providing a means for gambling on various Indian elections, according to India Times.
Chandrakar and Uppal, who ran it from Dubai, controlled how the apps functioned.
With complete operational management and ownership of 80 per cent of the profits, the two promoters.
The two have reportedly combined earnings from this app of about Rs 5,000 crore, according to ED.
They paid informal couriers known as angadiya entities a nominal fee to transport liquid cases and precious metals through bullion markets and jewellers. The ED conducted raids against these angadiya organisations in eight different places.
From being local bookies to creating illegal app
In order to reach a wider audience, Chandrakar and Uppal, who started out as local bookies, moved abroad and developed this illegal app.
When they were in their twenties, Uppal was an engineering graduate and Chandrakar used to sell juice in Bhilai, Chhattisgarh.
They began the platform in Dubai later in 2018.
The duo then went all-out with their software, luring students, unemployed youngsters, farmers, and others with the promise of quick riches.
By allowing its users to utilise credit cards, UPI, debit cards, and bank transfers for betting, the app continued to evade India’s foreign currency, money-laundering, and taxes rules as it expanded its user base.
Chandrakar then carried out transactions using the dormant or partially active accounts in exchange for a nominal charge. Authorities found it difficult to follow the transactions totalling crores through various accounts as a result.
In recent years, Chandrakar’s app propelled him to a position of dominance in India’s illegal offshore gambling, from which he later acquired brands including FairPlay, Reddy Anna, and Lotus 365. He even established innovative new companies under the name “BetBhai and Ambani Book.”
With inputs from agencies
