The Enforcement Directorate (ED) has intensified its crackdown on the Mahadev Online Book betting racket, attaching assets worth Rs 91.82 crore under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA), 2002. The action was taken by the ED’s Raipur Zonal Office in connection with illegal betting operations run through Mahadev Online Book (MOB) and Skyexchange.com.
According to the ED, bank balances amounting to Rs 74.28 crore were attached from foreign entities Perfect Plan Investment LLC and Exim General Trading–GZCO, allegedly controlled by key accused Sourabh Chandrakar, Anil Kumar Agarwal, and Vikas Chhaparia. These entities were used to launder proceeds of crime and project them as legitimate investments. Another names that have been linked to the Mahadev Betting app case are Ratan Lal Jain and Ravi Uppal.
According to reports, Ratan Lal Jain is co-owner of the Mahadev betting app, and the Enforcement Directorate (ED) says he is absconding. He is linked with the operation of the illegal betting network along with other accused. According to reports, the ED has found financial transactions worth crores involving Ratan Lal Jain, Girish Talreja (another co-owner), and Shubham Soni in connection with Mahadev betting operations.
The agency also attached Rs 17.5 crore worth of properties belonging to Gagan Gupta, a close associate of Skyexchange owner Hari Shankar Tibrewal. Investigators found that these assets, including premium real estate and liquid holdings, were acquired using cash generated from illegal betting activities.
The ED probe revealed that Mahadev Online Book and allied betting platforms generated massive illicit proceeds, which were laundered through a network of benami accounts, hawala channels, trade-based laundering mechanisms, and crypto-assets. The funds were later routed back into India through foreign portfolio investments (FPIs) and deployed in the Indian stock market.
Investigators also unearthed a sophisticated cashback arrangement, where FPIs investing in Indian listed companies were allegedly required to return 30–40 per cent of the investment in cash to promoters. Gagan Gupta has been identified as a beneficiary of at least Rs 98 crore through such transactions, involving companies including Salasar Techno Engineering Ltd and Tiger Logistics Ltd.
So far, the ED has conducted searches at over 175 locations nationwide, and the total value of assets seized, frozen, or attached has crossed Rs 2,600 crore. The agency has arrested 13 individuals and named 74 entities as accused in five prosecution complaints filed to date.
The investigation remains ongoing, with further action expected as the agency continues to trace and recover proceeds of crime linked to the sprawling betting syndicate.
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