Raipur, Nov 4: A special court in Chhattisgarh’s Raipur on Wednesday granted the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) eight-day custody of Saurabh Chandrakar, the alleged kingpin in the Rs 6,000-crore Mahadev online betting app case, officials said.
Chandrakar, who was recently extradited from Oman, was sent to a two-day CBI transit remand on Monday as the agency wanted to bring him to Chhattisgarh for production before the trial court in the case.
He was brought to Raipur in the CBI custody on a private flight on Tuesday evening, they said.
On Wednesday, Chandrakar was produced before Special Judge (CBI) Manoj Kumar Singh Thakur in Raipur and the central investigative agency sought his custody for 10 days, Defence Lawyer Tushar Giri told PTI.
The court granted eight days custody of the accused to the central agency, he said.
The court allowed the CBI to take Chandrakar to Delhi for questioning, he added.
The CBI had registered an FIR on December 18, 2024, taking over the investigation from the State Economic Offence Bureau of Chhattisgarh following notifications issued by the state government and the Centre.
It is alleged that Chandrakar and co-accused Ravi Uppal, along with associates, promoted the Mahadev Book App and ran online betting through panel and branch operators.
Hundreds of bank accounts were allegedly opened on the basis of commission and the illegal betting proceeds were routed to the UAE through various accounts.
The accused allegedly operated the syndicate from Dubai, which was called its ‘Head Office’, and employed a large number of youth from Chhattisgarh as managers. (PTI)
