The Enforcement Directorate (ED) has attached assets worth ₹940.77 crore linked to EBIX Group Chairman Vikas Garg, his family members and companies owned or controlled by them in connection with the Mahadev Online Book money laundering case.
The attachment was made under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA), 2002, according to a press release issued by the agency’s Raipur Zonal Office. The attached assets include residential properties, land, equity shares, investments and other movable and immovable assets.
The cases involve allegations of criminal conspiracy, cheating and forgery.
According to the agency, the betting network was operated from outside India through a criminal network and generated more than ₹450 crore every month through illegal betting activities.
Agency alleges ₹1,707 crore was routed to entities linked to Vikas Garg
The investigation has found that money generated through the Mahadev Online Book and Sky Exchange betting platforms was moved through accommodation entries, shell companies and layered financial transactions to make it appear legitimate.
The agency alleged that around ₹1,707 crore from the betting platforms was routed to companies owned or controlled by Vikas Garg. It added that the funds were later used to buy shares, make investments and acquire other assets.
Total attachments in the case rise to around ₹3,800 crore
The agency has already issued seven Provisional Attachment Orders in the case and filed prosecution complaints, including supplementary prosecution complaints, before the Special Court (PMLA) in Raipur. The court has taken cognisance of the money laundering offence.
Before the latest action, assets worth around ₹2,825 crore, including overseas assets, had already been attached, frozen or seized.
With the latest attachment of ₹940.77 crore, the total value of assets attached, frozen or seized in the Mahadev Online Book case has reached around ₹3,800 crore.
The investigation is continuing.
The latest attachment is linked to the ED’s investigation into the Mahadev Online Book money laundering case, in which Vikas Garg, Chairman of EBIX Group, has been named as an accused.
