Ranbir Kapoor summoned by Enforcement Directorate in Mahadev betting app case

Large-scale expenditure in cash is also being done in India for advertising of betting websites to attract new users and franchise (panel) seekers, the ED further said

The Enforcement Directorate (ED) on October 4 summoned Bollywood actor Ranbir Kapoor on October 6 in connection with the Mahadev betting app money laundering case in Chhattisgarh, officials of the probing agency said.

Ranbir Kapoor allegedly received money from the promoters of the betting application for performing at the wedding of one of the promoters, ED officials said. The ED has asked Ranbir Kapoor to appear at the Raipur office for questioning.

Several other celebrities and actors are also under the ED radar in connection with this case and they will also be summoned soon, PTI reported quoting sources.

According to the ED, the Mahadev betting app promoted by Sourabh Chandrakar and Ravi Uppal was running operations from Dubai. It was allegedly using the online book betting application to enrol new users, create IDs and launder money through a layered web of benami bank accounts.

An investigation has revealed that the Mahadev Online Book App is run from a central head office in the UAE. It operates by franchising “panel/branches” to their known associates on a 70-30 percent profit ratio, the agency said. Large-scale hawala operations are done to siphon off the proceeds of betting to off-shore accounts, it added. Large-scale expenditure in cash is also being done in India for advertising of betting websites to attract new users and franchise (panel) seekers, it further said.

The company promoters hail from Bhilai in Chhattisgarh and the Mahadev online book betting application is an umbrella syndicate arranging online platforms for enabling illegal betting websites.

(With inputs from PTI)