Mahadev Betting Probe: ED Attaches ₹930 Crore Assets Linked To Ebix Chairman Vikas Garg

Mumbai, June 18: The Enforcement Directorate (ED) has provisionally attached assets worth over Rs 930 crore linked to businessman Vikas Garg and his associated entities in connection with the Mahadev online betting app money laundering case. Garg, chairman of the EBIX Group, is under investigation for allegedly facilitating the layering and integration of proceeds of crime generated by the betting syndicate through a complex network of stock market transactions, shell entities and Foreign Portfolio Investment (FPI) structures.

The attachment is among the largest actions taken by the agency in the Mahadev betting case and forms part of its ongoing investigation into the alleged diversion and layering of betting proceeds through Indian and overseas entities.

Assets worth over Rs 930 crore attached

A substantial portion of the attached assets comprises equity shares worth around Rs 893 crore in Eraaya Lifespaces Ltd, a company promoted by the Garg family, which had acquired US-based technology firm Ebix Inc through its subsidiary structure. The agency has also attached residential properties linked to Garg in Delhi, office premises and immovable assets in Goa, Nainital and other locations, taking the total value of attached assets to over Rs 930 crore.

According to ED sources, investments allegedly routed through FPI structures were channelled into a group of companies linked to Garg, including Eraaya Lifespaces, Ebix Inc, Vikas Lifecare and Vikas Ecotech. The probe alleges that funds connected to the Mahadev and Sky Exchange betting networks were layered through offshore vehicles before being deployed in share market transactions and corporate deals.

Investigators further allege that Garg functioned as a key corporate conduit for H.S. Tibrewal, described as a principal figure in the Mahadev betting network overseeing the Dubai-based operations of the illegal platform Sky Exchange. The probe suggests Garg had known Tibrewal since 2021 and was aware of large-scale illicit proceeds being generated through online betting operations, which were subsequently routed through various entities in the form of FPIs, FDIs and other corporate instruments.

Allegations of stock market manipulation

According to the ED and earlier SEBI findings, Garg is alleged to have manipulated the stock market by laundering illicit cash proceeds from the betting syndicate into listed Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs) and penny stocks under his control. Operating in tandem with Dubai-based hawala operator Tibrewal, Garg allegedly received crores of illegal betting funds masked as FPIs, FDIs and corporate bonds.

These funds were allegedly channelled through a network of entry operators who converted hawala cash into layered banking entries and routed them through benami accounts and proxy shareholders, including Garg’s relative Vishesh Gupta. The converted funds were then used to acquire large volumes of shares in companies such as Eraaya Lifespaces, Vikas Lifecare and GG Engineering.

Investigators allege that, given the low public float of these micro-cap and SME stocks, the heavy infusion of capital led to artificial price movements and a misleading impression of market demand. Once prices were inflated, operators were suspected of either offloading holdings or leveraging the inflated valuations for corporate restructuring and financing, resulting in alleged gains at the expense of retail investors.

Probe into linked entities continues

The probe has further revealed that funds were funnelled into other Garg-controlled entities, namely M/s GG Engineering Ltd and Teamo Productions HQ Ltd, via cash-against-accommodation entries managed by financial proxies. During custodial interrogation, Amit Saraogi, a close associate of Tibrewal, reportedly admitted to providing these fraudulent banking accommodation entries against hard cash on Garg’s instructions.

The agency is also examining alleged proxy shareholding in M/s Integra Essentia Ltd, where documents recovered during searches suggest that a close relative of Garg held shares on his behalf using funds allegedly routed through illicit channels.

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Garg remains under investigation for alleged share price manipulation and money laundering. The ED had conducted searches at his premises in April last year, recovering digital data, offshore trust structures and benami shareholding records. He was subsequently summoned multiple times and his statements were recorded under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA).

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