The Mumbai Police have registered an FIR against the Khiladi app, a subsidiary of the Mahadev app. According to the FIR obtained exclusively by FPJ, it is mentioned that the accused Saurabh Chandrakar, actively participated in match-fixing to earn profits through unofficial means.
The complainant Prakash Bankar, an RTI activist, alleged that the results of most matches were manipulated and decided by Chandrakar and his associates. For the match-fixing activities, Chandrakar's close associates residing in London, Dinesh Khambhat, and Chander Agarwal, are reported to manage the fixings and are named as significant match-fixers in India. According to the registered FIR, the complainant, Prakash Bankar, has stated that he learned from reliable sources that, through a thorough investigation, it will be revealed that the accused Chander Agarwal is involved in this cricket league and plays a direct and/or indirect role in both previous and ongoing match-fixing activities.
As per the complaint, Mumbai-based accused Mohit Barman, along with associates Dinesh Khambhat, Rohitkumar Murgai, and Gaurav Barman, are linked. They are directly involved in the cricket league and hold direct equity in the associations participating in the league. Through their collaboration, they control and operate the player booking website/portal to regulate and operate it. As participants in the league, they are implicated in the criminal acts of match-fixing in cricket matches through their participating associations.
Chandrakar associated with several Congress leaders: FIR
In the FIR, the complaint mentioned that accused Saurabh Chandrakar is associated with several influential personalities along with senior political leaders affiliated with the Indian National Congress party. A particular incident that stands out is a personal family event organized by Saurab Chandrakar one of these senior political leaders, who was present, especially in the event organized in 2022. From the above event, it was evident that the accused Saurabh Chandrakar received blessings and protection from senior political leaders.
According to the complaint, Saurabh Chandrakar has 1200 branches, earning ₹2 Lakhs, 40 thousand per day per branch. In a month, both promoters together earn ₹860 crores, resulting in significant profits. A substantial portion of the profit is alleged to have been sent to him by syndicate members through hawala, and a considerable amount of the earned money has been converted into cryptocurrency.
As per the FIR, Saurabh Chandrakar used his Bitcoin wallet to receive and transfer money. Currently, his Bitcoin wallet holds $2,078,318.38, which is equivalent to ₹17.3 crores in Indian currency. Apart from Bitcoin, Saurabh Chandrakar had an Ethereum coin wallet with $26,224,576, which, in Indian rupees, is valued at ₹218 crores.
According to the FIR and the complaint, actor Shahid Kapoor was reported to be using the app and trusting it. The FIR alleges that Saurabh Chandrakar and Ravi Uppal are the masterminds behind the app. Saurabh Chandrakar, the founder of the Khiladi app, a subsidiary of the Mahadev betting app, is accused. Additionally, 32 syndicate operatives, based in Mumbai, Kolkata, and Chhattisgarh, are purportedly overseeing the entire betting business, match-fixing, and converting the earned money, amounting to crores, into cryptocurrency. The case was on the verge of being transferred to the Economic Offenses Wing (EOW) for an investigation into the ₹15,000 crore betting empire.
According to the FIR:
1) Rohit Kumar Murgai from Punjab is identified as a match-fixer, serving as a close associate of Chandrakar. His role involves handling the betting money and converting it into cryptocurrency.
2) Amit Sharma and Kumar, residents of Vile Parle and currently residing in Dubai, have been assigned the role of panel operators distribution and are responsible for collecting 80 percent of the profit money from the panel operators.
3) Kumar has allegedly amassed significant property, approximately 20 million in London and the United Kingdom.along with Amit sharma he is handling the panel operator distribution.
4) Shubham Soni, from Bhilai, is the administrator of Mahadev and all other subsidiary apps of Chandrakar and Uppal.
5) Atul Agrwal, also from Bhilai and currently residing in Dubai, is reported by Shubham Soni. He oversees administrative responsibilities and transactions related to match-fixing.
6) Vikash Chaparia, from Kolkata and currently in Dubai, is a Chartered Accountant by profession. He manages the financial operations of the Mahadev app and other subsidiary apps. Currently, Vikash Chaparia and Amit Sharma are promoters of the Laser 365 betting app.
7) Another accused, Chander Agarwal, currently residing in London, is involved in the operation of match-fixing along with other accused individuals.
The First Information Report (FIR) was filed on Tuesday at Matunga police station, following a directive from Kurla's magistrate court. In the FIR, the complainant, Prakash Bankar, a social activist from Matunga, alleges that a fraud of approximately ₹15,000 crore has been committed through online betting apps from 2019 to the present. This fraudulent activity is gaining popularity among the masses, partly due to the endorsement by multi-level celebrities. A total of 32 individuals are mentioned as accused in the FIR.
