Raipur: A CBI court in Raipur, Chhattisgarh, on Wednesday granted eight days of custodial remand of Sourabh Chandrakar, the main accused in the Mahadev online betting app case, to the Central Bureau of Investigation. The court accepted the CBI’s request for remand during his production hearing.
The agency’s team will now take him to Delhi for interrogation at its headquarters. He is required to be produced before the court again on November 12.
Officials and lawyers from the Enforcement Directorate (ED) were also present during the CBI’s arguments.
The ED has separately sought Chandrakar’s remand. His counsel, Tushar Giri, opposed the CBI’s remand plea, calling it improper.
Heavy police deployment and heightened security were arranged around the court campus in view of the hearing.
Chandrakar, a prime accused in the alleged multi-crore betting scam estimated at around Rs 6,000 crore, was flown to Raipur from Delhi by a CBI team on Tuesday. The agency brought him to India after his extradition from Oman. On Monday, a Delhi court at Rouse Avenue granted two days’ transit remand and handed him over to the CBI.
Chhattisgarh Chief Minister Vishnu Deo Sai said the key accused has been brought back and that CBI questioning may yield several more names. He targeted the Congress, alleging that the party had undermined democracy for its own interests and is now speaking of democratic values.
Congress state president Deepak Baij, addressing a press conference, noted that while Chandrakar has been brought to India, co-accused Ravi Uppal and Shubham Soni remain at large. He questioned the whereabouts of Soni, who had released a video related to the Mahadev app during the 2023 elections. Baij claimed that more than 72 FIRs were registered in the matter during the previous Congress government, along with raids and arrests.
Earlier, Chandrakar’s lawyer raised questions about the extradition process, citing the court order in Oman. He argued that India’s request to Oman had received approval only for the ED case and not the CBI case, and that action could therefore be taken only in the matters on the basis of which he was extradited.
The CBI is investigating the Mahadev betting app cases. The Chhattisgarh government had transferred 13 FIRs to the agency; charge sheets have already been filed in two of them.
The ED is also probing the money-laundering angle and has filed a prosecution complaint against Chandrakar.
According to the CBI, Chandrakar, Ravi Uppal, and their associates promoted the app, created multiple platforms for online betting, and channelled the proceeds through various bank accounts to the UAE.
Chandrakar had been absconding in Dubai since 2023. An Interpol Red Corner Notice was issued against him. He was arrested by Oman’s Royal Police on July 8 and brought to India on November 1 after 116 days.
(IANS)
