Mahadev Online Book app founders Ravi Uppal and Sourabh Chandrakar, recently embroiled in serious allegations surrounding the betting application, on Monday vehemently denied any association with the alleged betting racket.
In their first statement since the controversy erupted, the duo expressed profound regret at being "wrongly accused and portrayed as masterminds of this operation".
They asserted that these claims are "entirely baseless and represent an attempt to tarnish the reputation of two law-abiding citizens".
"They believe the investigation has been inadequate, and instead of revealing the truth, it seems focused on scapegoating. Merely living a comfortable lifestyle, they emphasize, does not imply their involvement in illicit activities,” according to the statement.
"Their findings, sourced meticulously from reliable channels, unequivocally point to Subham Soni as the orchestrator behind the Mahadev Book betting application," the statement read.
Soni operates through a company named 'Mahadevbook Markets Limited,' registered in Saint Vincent and the Grenadines. He holds the position of shareholder and director on the 'Mahadevbook Markets Limited board,' conclusively establishing him as the principal architect of this operation.
"Uppal and Chandrakar are in possession of substantial evidence supporting their claims of innocence, which they are prepared to present as necessary. They are committed to offering their complete cooperation to the authorities to ensure justice is served and the truth prevails untarnished," read the statement on their behalf.
Uppal and Chandrakar also urged media outlets and law enforcement agencies to rectify the prevailing narrative, offering complete cooperation to ensure justice is served. In India, Uppal’s business ventures encompass the successful execution of various civil construction projects of a multifaceted nature of strategic importance and complexity within the state of Chhattisgarh and Middle East.
Chandrakar’s business “Juice Factory” has 25 branches all over Bhilai, Chhattisgarh. Meanwhile, the Enforcement Directorate (ED), probing the Mahadev Online Book (MOB) money laundering case, has identified more than 30 Bollywood celebrities, including several top personalities, who had attended the two programmes of the companies' promoters in the UAE in September last year and in February this year.
According to ED sources, the agency issued fresh summons to the MOB’s promoters, Chandrakar and Uppal, both said to be based in Dubai, on the day it issued summons to comedian Kapil Sharma, and actors Huma Qureshi and Heena Khan for questioning.
The ED has also summoned Bollywood actor Ranbir Kapoor for questioning.
It is alleged that the MOB spent around Rs 200 crore on the marriage ceremony programme in Dubai with private jets hired to ferry family members from Nagpur to the UAE. The ED probe had also found that celebrities were hired to perform in the marriage. Wedding planners, dancers, decorators, etc, were hired from Mumbai and hawala channels were used to make payments in cash.
The ED has also successfully identified other major players involved in the money laundering operations of the MOB App. On September 15, the ED said that it seized Rs 417 crore after carrying out searches in Kolkata, Bhopal, and Mumbai in connection with the case.
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