Accused in Mahadev app case retracts statement against Baghel
Asim Das, a driver arrested in the Mahadev gambling app case, has retracted his statement implicating Chhattisgarh CM Bhupesh Baghel, claiming he is a scapegoat.
Das was arrested by the ED earlier this month for allegedly delivering money to politicians for election funding. The Congress party has accused the ED of targeting the government. Das has written a letter to the court stating he was wrongly implicated and coerced into signing a statement. CM Baghel has denied the allegations and accused the BJP and ED of conspiracy.
Raipur : Asim Das, a driver who was arrested by the Enforcement Directorate (ED) earlier this month in connection with the ₹508 crore Mahadev gambling app case, has retracted his statement that earlier allegedly implicated Chhattisgarh chief minister Bhupesh Baghel, and said that he is “being made a scapegoat”.
ED started investigating the Mahadev Book Online Betting App syndicate in July 2022 under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA), alleging that the promoters of the app – identified as Saurabh Chandrakar and Ravi Uppal – are based overseas and remotely ran illegal betting operations with proceeds of crimes running into several thousand crores.
On November 3, four days before the first phase of Chhattisgarh assembly polls, ED arrested Das and a constable, Bhim Singh Yadav (41), and allegedly seized ₹5.39 crore in cash from Das’s car.
As per ED, Das said that he, on the instructions of another accused Shubham Soni, came to Raipur to “deliver the money to politicians of the Indian Congress party for election funding”.
ED told the court that Das admitted to them that the amount was to be delivered to ruling political executives and named CM Baghel as the intended final recipient for the cash.
However, Das has now retracted the statement.
“I am now realising that I am being made a scapegoat… I want to make it clear that I have never given any money or any kind of support to Baghel, any Verma or any other Congress party leader or worker,” he wrote in a written statement submitted to the special PMLA court.
Reacting to the development, the Congress launched a sharp attack at the central agency. “ED’s allegations in the case are not true… They want to target the Congress government,” said party spokesperson RP Singh.
Earlier, on November 10, Das wrote a letter to the court, alleging that he is being wrongly implicated by Soni.
“I met Shubham Soni in Dubai where he promised to help me in setting up a construction firm… but the newspapers are reporting a very different story….” he wrote in the letter.
“When I asked Shubham Soni about the ongoing investigations into the Mahadev app, he assured me that Saurabh Chandrakar and Ravi Uppal have already sorted things out with some ED officer named Mishra…” Das’s letter added.
The letter further detailed how Das was instructed to pick up a car, deliver it to a hotel in Raipur, and later found cash in the vehicle. Das claimed he was coerced into signing a statement he did not understand and vehemently denied supplying money to any politician.
“We have filed an application along with the letter written by Asim Das from jail narrating how he was trapped and falsely accused in the matter. We didn’t know what’s going on and came to know about the allegations like him being a courier boy from the news reports and hence it became necessary to put forward our side,” said advocate Shoaib Alvi, representing Asim Das in court .
Soon after the controversy broke out, CM Baghel denied the charge and made counter allegations against the BJP and ED. “First of all, I do not know this person nor have I ever met him in the way he is claiming. I can’t say if he was a part of any gathering or function. Secondly, this person is claiming that he is the owner of ‘Mahadev App’. Surprisingly, even the ED, the agency which has been investigating this case for months, was not aware of this and till two days ago, the ED was calling him a manager,” he said.