Ex-Bigg Boss contestant surrenders Rs 1.2 crore to ED over Mahadev app promotion

TV presenter and former Bigg Boss contestant Shefali Bagga has voluntarily surrendered Rs 1.20 crore to the Enforcement Directorate (ED) in connection with its probe into the Mahadev Online Betting app syndicate, according to the agency's latest chargesheet filed before a Raipur court.The ED has alleged that Bagga received money from members of the betting syndicate for promoting the illegal online betting platform through promotional videos. The agency's latest chargesheet states that she surrendered Rs 1.20 crore after being questioned in the case.The development comes months after the ED searched Bagga's Delhi residence in May and questioned her twice as part of its investigation into the promotion of the betting syndicate.ED SAYS BAGGA WAS PAID RS 1.5 CROREAccording to the chargesheet, the ED found that Bagga had received a total of around Rs 1.5 crore for making promotional videos for the Mahadev betting app syndicate. During the search at her residence in Delhi, ED officials seized Rs 30 lakh in cash, the agency said. Bagga later surrendered another Rs 1.20 crore to the ED. According to the agency, she told investigators that she was unaware that the app was being operated illegally.Bagga has a substantial social media following, which the ED has cited in the context of its probe into the promotion of the betting platform.ED CHARGESHEET NAMES 42 PEOPLE The latest chargesheet filed by the ED names 42 people, including Vikas Garg, chairman of the Ebix Group, who was arrested by the agency in the case.The ED has alleged that Garg was involved in routing proceeds of crime generated by the Mahadev betting syndicate through alleged mastermind Harishankar Tibrewal. The agency has further alleged that funds were diverted through foreign portfolio investments and bonds to companies linked to Garg.The ED has also alleged that Garg and Tibrewal, along with their associates, used the proceeds of crime to manipulate the share prices of several listed companies.The agency had attached properties worth more than Rs 940 crore linked to Garg before his arrest.EASEMYTRIP PROMOTER ALSO CHARGESHEETEDThe latest ED chargesheet also names EaseMyTrip promoter Nishant Pitti. The agency has alleged that more than Rs 59 crore in proceeds of crime were received from Tibrewal and subsequently funnelled through the network.Garg, who was associated with the BJP in Delhi, was removed from the party following his arrest in the case, according to the information in the chargesheet.ED PROBE HAS ALSO COVERED BOLLYWOODThe Mahadev betting app investigation has previously extended to several Bollywood personalities, including actors, actresses, performers and singers.The ED has questioned or summoned celebrities over their alleged links with the syndicate, including those who attended events organised overseas by promoters or their associates and those who appeared in promotional videos related to the betting platform.The agency's latest chargesheet puts the alleged proceeds of crime generated by the Mahadev Online Betting syndicate at more than Rs 75,000 crore, while suggesting that the actual amount could be higher.Mahadev promoters Sourabh Chandrakar and Ravi Uppal, among others, remain wanted in the case, according to the ED. The agency has so far filed six chargesheets in the case.- Ends