The Supreme Court has granted regular bail in the Mahadev betting case to the Petitioner arrested by the Enforcement Directorate (ED) under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act, 2002 (PMLA), in connection with the alleged recovery of ₹6.50 crore, purportedly meant for delivery to former Chhattisgarh Chief Minister Bhupesh Baghel. A Bench comprising Justice M.M. Sundresh and Justice Satish Chandra Sharma noted that the petitioner had remained in custody for over two years and charges are yet to be framed.
The case stemmed from an Enforcement Directorate probe into the alleged Mahadev online betting and gambling racket, in which the petitioner was arrested after ₹6.50 crore in cash was recovered from his possession during a raid at a hotel in Raipur. The ED, Raipur, registered an ECIR under Sections 3 and 4 of the PMLA and claimed that the seized amount constituted ‘proceeds of crime’ generated from illegal betting activities. The ED alleged that he was acting as a courier at the instance of the main accused, and the cash was meant to be delivered to former Chhattisgarh Chief Minister Bhupesh Baghel.
The petitioner had approached the Supreme Court challenging the Chhattisgarh High Court’s order dated March 11, 2025, which had rejected his bail plea.
The Court observed that although a substantial amount of money was recovered from the appellant, the prolonged incarceration without commencement of trial weighed in favour of granting bail. The Court specifically noted that the charges had not yet been framed, despite the appellant having spent more than two years in custody.
Setting aside the High Court’s order, the Supreme Court granted bail to the appellant on terms and conditions to be fixed by the concerned trial court.
Appearances
Petitioner- Mr. Siddharth R. Gutpa, Adv. Mr. Mrigank Prabhakar, AOR Mr. Balraj Virha, Adv. Mr. Aman Agarwal, Adv. Mr. Uddaish Palya, Adv. Ms. Surbhi Saxena, Adv. Mr. Siddharth Sahu, Adv. Ms. Astha Singh, Adv.
Respondent- Mr. Raja Thakare, A.S.G. Mr. Zoheb Hussain, Adv.
