What happened
The Indian Express reported on 12 November 2026 that a special CBI court that day remanded Saurabh Chandrakar, the alleged kingpin of the Mahadev betting app case, to seven days of judicial custody, until 19 November. Chandrakar's lawyer said the court dismissed the Enforcement Directorate's application to execute a non-bailable warrant against him. ED counsel said the agency would ask the special PMLA court for his custody. On 4 November, while seeking his custody, the CBI told the special court in Raipur that it needed to identify public servants who allegedly took 'protection money' from Chandrakar and others to let the betting app operate, and alleged that hawala channels were used to pay officials, including police, and politicians in Chhattisgarh. The allegations have not been proven in court.
How the scam works
A charge, an arraignment, a witness's testimony or a prosecutor's accusation is not a finding of guilt. People and companies named in these reports are accused, charged or, where the source says so, convicted or sentenced, and they are presumed innocent unless and until a court finds otherwise. Do not treat a news report or a press release as a substitute for a court judgment. If you think you were affected by the same kind of scheme, keep records and report them to the investigating agency named in the source, or to your local police and your bank.
Source
Source: https://x.com/IndianExpress/status/2120814606780453155 (@IndianExpress, Nov 12, 2026, 4:42 AM ET); https://indianexpress.com/article/india/saurabh-chandrakar-seven-days-judicial-custody-mahadev-case-10960143/ (The Indian Express, 12 Nov 2026)