In a recent development, the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) unveiled a video featuring Shubham Soni, one of the accused in the Mahadev Book betting app case, where he asserted his ownership of the app and claimed to have evidence of disbursing Rs 508 crore to Chhattisgarh Chief Minister Bhupesh Baghel. This revelation was made public during a press conference held by Siddharthnath Singh, the central media convener of the BJP, PTI reported.
The Congress party, currently embroiled in an electoral battle with the BJP in Chhattisgarh, swiftly responded by labeling the video as a conspiracy orchestrated by the BJP. According to Singh, Shubham Soni, residing in Dubai, shed light on the workings of the Mahadev app, implicating CM Baghel, his son Bittu, political advisor Vinod Verma, and an IPS officer in the alleged betting app syndicate. Singh emphasized that Baghel's moral authority to hold office was seriously undermined by these allegations.
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The Enforcement Directorate (ED) is actively investigating the illegal betting app syndicate and has conducted raids on Mahadev Book in Chhattisgarh.
In the video, Shubham Soni identified himself as the app's owner and claimed to have paid Rs 508 crore to "Baghel saheb" and other individuals, expressing frustration at the lack of results and the mounting pressure from the ED. He appealed to the Indian government for assistance, stating his desire to return to India and his apprehension about the political system he finds himself ensnared in.
Interestingly, the Central government has taken action by issuing blocking orders against 22 illegal betting platforms, including the Mahadev app, at the request of the ED, as stated in an official announcement.
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Sushi Anand Shukla, the president of the Congress state communication wing, dismissed the video as a BJP conspiracy driven by fear of the Congress party. Shukla claimed that the BJP's resorting to such tactics was a sign of their inability to compete with the Congress in the state, emphasizing that the people of Chhattisgarh would hold the BJP accountable in the upcoming elections.
