Chhattisgarh businessman Sunil Dammani, trapped in the Mahadev Batting App case, has got some relief from the Supreme Court. The court has accepted his request for early hearing of his petition. This case will be heard on Thursday. Sunil was arrested by the Enforcement Directorate (ED) in August last year in a money laundering case related to the illegal betting app. The jailed businessman’s lawyer urged a bench of Chief Justice of India (CJI) DY Chandrachud and Justices JB Pardiwala and Manoj Mishra that there was an urgent need to hear the bail plea.
When Dammani’s lawyer said that his client has been in jail for more than 13 months, the CJI said, ‘We generally do not leave the board (cases listed for hearing on a particular day) but this is a bail plea…we Will hear this on Thursday. On August 23 last year, the ED had arrested Dammani along with three others for their alleged involvement in the Mahadev Satta app money laundering case.
The Central Investigation Agency had also conducted a search operation in the properties of 10 people including Vinod Verma, political advisor of former Chhattisgarh Chief Minister Bhupesh Baghel. Apart from Dammani, his brother Anil Dammani, Chhattisgarh Police Assistant Sub-Inspector (ASI) Chandra Bhushan Verma and Raipur resident Satish Chandrakar were arrested in this case.
The ED money laundering case is linked to the state police’s 2022 FIR against illegal gambling app ‘Mahadev’ at Mohan Nagar police station in Durg district. According to the ED, the Dammani brothers owned a jewelery shop and a petrol pump and were allegedly involved in hawala transactions. ASI Verma allegedly took money from other accused to protect them from police action and is suspected to have given money to other police officers as well.
