Mahadev betting case: ED attaches ₹940cr assets of Vikas Garg
What's the story
The Enforcement Directorate (ED) has attached movable and immovable assets worth ₹940.77 crore belonging to businessman Vikas Garg and his family members. The action is part of the agency's probe into illegal betting operations run through Mahadev Online Book and Skyexchange. The attached properties include residential buildings, land parcels, equity shares, and other securities.
Asset accumulation
Total value of properties attached in this case reaches ₹3,800cr
The latest action by the ED has taken the total value of properties attached, seized, and frozen in this case to nearly ₹3,800 crore. The move was carried out by the agency's Raipur zonal office under a Provisional Attachment Order issued under the Prevention of MoneyLaundering Act (PMLA), 2002. This is part of an ongoing money laundering investigation into alleged illegal online betting networks run through Mahadev Online Book and Skyexchange.
Probe initiation
ED's probe based on multiple FIRs filed by state police
The ED's investigation was initiated on the basis of an FIR lodged by the Chhattisgarh Police, along with other FIRs filed by police authorities in Andhra Pradesh and West Bengal against operators, promoters, and associates of these alleged illegal online betting platforms. These FIRs include allegations of criminal conspiracy, cheating, and forgery.
Syndicate details
Agency claims betting syndicate generated proceeds of crime worth ₹450cr/month
The ED has revealed that the betting syndicate operates through a franchise-based 'panel' network run from abroad. It was generating proceeds of crime worth over ₹450 crore per month from illegal betting operations. The agency also said these proceeds were laundered through a "multi-layered structure of accommodation entries arranged against cash through a web of shell entities and other layered transactions designed to project the tainted funds as untainted."
Fund routing
Funds routed into entities owned and controlled by Vikas Garg
The ED's investigation revealed that proceeds of crime worth ₹940.77 crore from the Mahadev Online Book and Skyexchange betting operations were routed into entities owned and controlled by Vikas Garg. The agency said these funds were further layered through various entities and used for acquiring shares, securities, and other assets. Prior to this attachment, the ED had already attached assets worth around ₹2,825 crore in connection with this investigation.