Mahadev Online Betting App Co-Owner Ravi Uppal Detained in Dubai for Money Laundering Probe

Dubai: Ravi Uppal, one of the primary owners of the Mahadev online betting app, has been apprehended by Dubai police based on a red notice issued by Interpol at the request of the Enforcement Directorate (ED), according to official sources on Wednesday.

The 43-year-old businessman was taken into custody in Dubai last week, and the ED is actively coordinating with Dubai authorities to facilitate his deportation to India.

Uppal is under investigation by the ED in connection to a money laundering case associated with alleged illegal betting through online apps, in collaboration with the Chhattisgarh and Mumbai Police crime branches.

In October, the federal probe agency filed a money laundering charge sheet against Uppal and another promoter of the Internet-based platform, Sourabh Chandrakar, before a special Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA) court in Chhattisgarh's Raipur.

Following a court-issued non-bailable warrant, Interpol subsequently issued a red notice against the two individuals at the ED's behest.

The ED has informed the court that Uppal obtained a passport from Vanuatu, a Pacific Ocean island country, despite retaining Indian citizenship.

According to the prosecution complaint, Uppal was involved in generating and enjoying proceeds of crime, along with concealing and layering them. The ED alleged Uppal's role in delivering liaisoning money to bureaucrats and politicians in Chhattisgarh.

The projected proceeds of crime in this case amount to approximately ₹6,000 crore, as per the ED.

The agency had previously claimed that Mahadev betting app promoters, just before the Chhattisgarh assembly polls, allegedly paid about ₹508 crore to former Chhattisgarh chief minister Bhupesh Baghel. However, these allegations are still under investigation.

The ED's inquiry revealed that the Mahadev Online Book App operates from a central head office in the UAE. It functions by franchising "Panel/Branches" to associates on a 70-30 profit ratio. The agency highlighted large-scale hawala operations to divert betting proceeds to offshore accounts, as well as significant cash expenditures in India for advertising illegal betting websites to attract new users and franchise seekers.

Promoters of the company hail from Bhilai in Chhattisgarh, and the Mahadev online book betting application acts as an umbrella syndicate facilitating online platforms for illegal betting websites. The investigation continues, with efforts underway to locate the co-owner Sourabh Chandrakar, aged 28.