EOW to probe Burman family’s role in Religare acquisition bid

MUMBAI: The case registered by the Matunga police against 14 people, including Dabur group chairman Mohit Burman and his family members in the Religare acquisition bid case will now be investigated by the Economic Offences Wing (EOW) of the Mumbai police

MUMBAI: The case registered by the Matunga police against 14 people, including Dabur group chairman Mohit Burman and his family members in the Religare acquisition bid case will now be investigated by the Economic Offences Wing (EOW) of the Mumbai police.

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The decision to transfer the case was taken recently by the senior police officers who believe that the case needs the expertise of EOW’s specialised wing.

A spokesperson for the Burman family however dubbed the case a ‘baseless’ accusation that happened to coincide with their bid to acquire Religare Enterprises.

“We have started handing the documents to the EOW. The first FIR in the Mahadev betting app case in which the Burman family was also named is now transferred to the Mumbai Crime branch and the second FIR which is related to Religare acquisition bid will now be investigated by the EOW,” said a police officer.

The first FIR was filed in the matter on November 7 last year and alleged that the Burmans, who co-own the IPL team Punjab Kings XI, were part of a cricket betting racket. It named 32 people, including the Dubai-based promoters of the Mahadev betting app, Saurabh Chandrakar and Ravi Uppal.

In the second FIR, registered on November 11, a shareholder of Religare Enterprises Ltd, Vaibhav Gawli, has charged the Burmans with cheating and criminal conspiracy. Gawli complained that 14 persons, including Mohit Burman, Vivekchand Burman and Anandchand Burman, had shifted the assets of Religare Enterprises to its subsidiaries which had put the shareholders’ investment at risk.

The FIR is “a step provoked by vested interests in an attempt to block the acquisition of Religare Enterprises Ltd by the Burman Family,” the spokesperson for the Burmans had said earlier. “The Burman family remains shocked at these ‘arm twisting’ moves, which are grossly illegal.”

“From a copy of the FIR that is being circulated in the media, we note that allegations are being made that Mohit Burman and Gaurav Burman are directly related to some of the accused. Mohit Burman and Gaurav Burman do not even know or have ever met the accused mentioned in the FIR being circulated selectively in the media,” the spokesperson had added.

In the first FIR, social activist Prakash Banker claimed that the 32 accused he has named in his complaint have cumulatively earned over ₹15,000 crore from illegal betting. According to the FIR, Mahadev app’s promoter Chandrakar and two alleged bookies, London-based Dinesh Khambat and Dubai resident Chander Aggarwal, have been involved in match-fixing in a certain cricket league.

Banker alleged in the FIR that “Chander Aggarwal has a backdoor and/or indirect involvement in the team participating in this cricket league. He is known to be directly related to accused No. 16 namely Mohit Burman.”

The first FIR is already investigated by a Special Investigation Team (SIT) formed under the joint commissioner of police, Mumbai Crime branch, Laxmi Gautam and the second FIR which is in relation to the Religare deal will now be investigated by the EOW under the guidance of joint commissioner of police, EOW, Nishit Mishra.