ED probes ₹5,000-crore transactions linked to online gaming app

The Enforcement Directorate has started investigating banking transactions of ₹5000 crore related to an online gaming application, Mahadev, that happened over a year, and across the country

RAIPUR: The Enforcement Directorate (ED) has started investigating banking transactions of ₹5000 crore related to an online gaming application, Mahadev, that happened over a year, and across the country.

Over the past three months, Chhattisgarh police have arrested at least 200 people, mainly in Durg, Raipur and Bilaspur. (Archive)

Over the past three months, Chhattisgarh police have arrested at least 200 people, mainly in Durg, Raipur and Bilaspur, according to the state police officials.

ED, in a letter to Durg police, dated December 9, sought details of the case from the Station House Officer (SHO) of the Supela police station, including banking transactions, for investigation under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA). Most of the cases related to online gaming applications are registered with the Supela police station.

“In this regard, it is required to provide copy of the FIR/charge-sheets along with the details of the bank accounts discovered during search operation related to The Public Gambling Act,” the letter, written by ED’s assistant director Mukesh Kumar to the Supela SHO said.

The letter said that the information is being sought under section 54 of PMLA, 2002.

“ ED has asked for all the details mentioning the sections of PMLA which means that a case has been registered. ED will be focusing on more than 50 corporate accounts which are linked with gaming applications,” said a senior police officer of Durg district, asking not to be named.

The officer said the corporate accounts seem to be linked to shell companies, which were transferring or laundering huge amounts of money obtained from illicit online gaming applications to foreign destinations in west Asia .

“These activities can attract stringent provisions of both Foreign Exchange Management Act (FEMA) as well PMLA,” the officer added.

Earlier, Chhattisgarh police officials investigating the case have estimated that transactions worth ₹5,000 crore have taken place in the past year through Mahadev application across the country.

According to police officers, the Mahadev gaming application is being operated from around 30 centres. They estimate that around a million individuals have placed bets on Mahadev application in the last year and of them, about 100,000 placed multiple bets. “Most of these bets range from ₹ ₹1,000 to ₹5,000,” the officer cited above added. The primary target of the app seems to be the middle class, he said.

Mahadev app handlers got the money deposited into saving bank accounts opened using fake documents or by luring poor persons to give their Aadhaar or Permanent Account Number (PAN) details in lieu of ₹5,000, the Chattisgarh police investigators said.

Officers said Mahadev app handlers swiftly transferred the money from these saving accounts to their corporate accounts so that not more than ₹50-60 lakh remained in the saving accounts. “We have zeroed in more than 50 corporate Mahadev accounts and have details of about 10,000 savings accounts of people which were used to place bets,” the officer said.

Investigators claim the Mahadev App infrastructure is being run from Dubai, where betting is legal, and was used to lure Indian customers. They said ED is likely to question some of the main accused in the case shortly and may initiate proceedings against entities in Dubai.