Troubles for Chhattisgarh Chief Minister Bhupesh Baghel are likely to increase in the Mahadev betting app case as a 29-second audio message has been discovered by the Enforcement Directorate (ED), where the app's alleged owner Shubham Soni was heard telling his associate to send Rs 8-10 crore to the Congress leader.
This comes as Soni released a video from Dubai in which he made a sensational claim that he gave Rs 508 crore to the CM and his associates. Now, the ED is making preparations to summon Baghel and Raipur SP Prashant Agrawal.
In the audio message recovered from the phone of Dubai-based Asim Das, who was arrested by the ED in connection with the betting case, Soni was allegedly heard telling him that he was receiving a lot of calls for money and instructed him to go to India and give Rs 8-10 crore to Baghel.
"Brother, do one thing. You should leave for India immediately, and don't say anything now. I'm getting constant calls and messages from there for money. So, you go there. I'm arranging 8 to 10 crores from the Raipur branch, so you can leave it there with Baghel ji. Alright. And what else should I say? Have a conversation once so that our work doesn't stop, and if not, I'll take care of it next time. It's election time now, so it's not possible," revealed the audio clip.
The audio note was recovered from Das' WhatsApp chat with Soni. Two accused - Bhim Singh Yadav, working as a constable in the Chhattisgarh police force, and Das are currently in custody, having been arrested for violating the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA), the statement said.
Shubham Soni claims to give Rs 508 crore to Baghel
The betting app's alleged owner Shubham Soni released a video from Dubai in which he made a sensational claim that he gave Rs 508 crore to the CM and his associates. Mahadev app hit headlines after around Rs 5 crore cash was seized by the ED during raids in the election-bound Chhattisgarh. ED had seized around Rs 5 crore from Raipur and Bhilai a few days ago.
Baghel rejected the claim on social media platform X and said, "I wonder on what basis are all the responsible TV channels running the statement of an unknown person? Just because my name is in it? Is this not a case of defamation? It is no mystery why and how this video has come and it is also not difficult to understand that such a statement has been issued at the time of elections only to benefit the BJP."
Soni claimed that he was the owner of the Mahadev app in the unverified video. He showed his PAN card, Aadhar card and passport in the video message asserting he had started the Mahadev Betting App in the year 2021.
"I had started a small book (online booking) in Bhilai. Money started coming from that book, and my lifestyle changed. The neighbours started complaining. The matter started coming to light and the boys (workers) started being caught (by the police). Then I came in contact with one - 'Verma ji' and I started giving him Rs 10 lakh per month as protection money," he heard saying in the video.
Centre blocks 22 illegal betting apps, including Mahadev
The Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology (MeitY) on Sunday issued blocking orders against 22 illegal betting apps and websites, including Mahadev Book and Reddyannaprestopro, at the request of the Enforcement Directorate.
The action follows investigations conducted by the Enforcement Directorate (ED) against an illegal betting app syndicate and subsequent raids on Mahadev Book in Chhattisgarh, revealing the app's unlawful operations.
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