Saurabh Chandrakar, the alleged kingpin in the Mahadev app gambling platform case, has been arrested, The Indian Express has learnt. The arrest followed an Interpol red notice to law enforcement agencies worldwide to locate and provisionally arrest Chandrakar. The CBI had taken over the case in August. Enforcement Directorate’s counsel Saurabh Kumar Pandey said the process to arrest Chandrakar began on September 4, when a special court in Raipur issued a non-bailable warrant against him and Ravi Uppal, another promoter of the app. “This warrant was used to issue a red corner notice based on which he (Chandrakar) has been arrested. Yesterday (Thursday), we approached the special court again to receive the necessary documents to complete the extradition process. Now, this document will be sent to the respective court in Dubai. On our part, we’ll be sending this document to the central government,” he said. First having come to the light under the Bhupesh Baghel-led Congress government in Chhattisgarh, the Mahadev betting app is an online betting platform that enabled illegal gambling on various games, including poker, card games, and cricket, and even extended to placing bets on the elections. According to the ED, which has been investigating the case since 2022, the Dubai-based Saurabh Chandrakar, a former juice seller, and his associate Uppal are promoters and “kingpins” in the case. The agency has also alleged the involvement of various high-ranking politicians and bureaucrats from Chhattisgarh, including former chief minister Baghel. The case had become a major political flash-point between the Congress and BJP, with both parties levelling allegations against each other of shielding Chandrakar and Uppal. In its first Prosecution Complaint last October, a total of 14 accused had been booked in the case — including the app’s promoters Chandrakar and Uppal. In November, the ED alleged that Chandrakar and Uppal paid bribes of Rs 508 crore to Baghel and mentioned the former CM in its supplementary chargesheet filed in January this year. However, Baghel has not been named an accused in the ED case. On his part, former Baghel has denied any involvement, claiming he was being “targeted as part of a political conspiracy”. “The ED, at the behest of its political masters, is arresting people fraudulently and pressuring them to give statements against me and my colleagues. The allegations of money transactions made in these statements have no basis,” Baghel said in January.
