The agency has not yet written to the Jaggis to join the probe, the people told ET on condition of anonymity. ED recently froze more than 500,000 Gensol shares in the matter, as its suspects artificial price fluctuations in stocks.
This is through Dubai-based entity Zenith Multi Trading DMCC, ED suspects. The firm is linked to Mahadev betting case accused Hari Shankar Tibrewal.
“The probe has revealed stock manipulation using tainted funds in the Mahadev app case, which were received in Gensol Engineering through the FPI (foreign portfolio investor) routes. The probe will ascertain whether the promoters were aware of this fact,” said a senior government official.
On Monday, ED said it had attached fresh securities and demat accounts of more than Rs 573 crore in the Mahadev illegal online betting application case. “This includes shares of Gensol Engineering,” said another person.
Gensol shares had been frozen by the agency in the past too, according to the people.
According to shareholding data filed with the Bombay Stock Exchange, ED’s Raipur Zonal Office holds 520,063 shares, or 1.37% of GEL’s equity, as of the quarter ended December 2024. The shares, classified under the ‘government holding’ category, were earlier held by Dubai-based Zenith Multi.
The Raipur unit is investigating irregularities linked to the Mahadev case.
On April 16, ED, which probes money laundering cases, searched more than 50 places in New Delhi, Mumbai, Ahmedabad, Indore, Jaipur and Sambalpur. These include the New Delhi residence of EaseMyTrip founder Nishant Pitti, the people said.
In a statement on Monday, the agency said, “ED investigation revealed that funds/POC (proceeds of crime) so generated by these betting platforms were being transferred out of India and, later, deployed in the Indian stock market in the name of ‘FPIs’ (which are based out of Mauritius, Dubai, etc). The funds were deployed/introduced in certain companies for causing ‘artificial price fluctuations’ of certain ‘SME (small and medium enterprises) sector securities’ so as to cheat common investors. Some of these investments have been identified and frozen during searches.”
The focus of the ED probe is to uncover the modus operandi of the alleged stock price manipulation.
“The seizures made during the searches has also revealed role of ‘promoters of such listed entities’, who have deployed these tainted funds in their company under the guise of preferential issue of shares, sale of promoters/promoter-controlled shares and issue of share warrants. Some of these listed companies were also found to be used for layering the investment in share markets,” the statement said.
So far, ED has conducted searches at more than 170 premises in the Mahadev app case. As a result of the investigation, immovable and movable assets valued at about Rs 3,002.47 crore have been seized, frozen or attached.
The agency has also arrested 13 persons, while 74 entities have been arraigned as accused in the five prosecution complaints filed. The main accused, Saurabh Chandrakar and Ravi Uppal, fled the country after the alleged scam surfaced. Both Uppal and Chandrakar have renounced their Indian passports and have taken the citizenship of Oceania country, Vanuatu.
According to ED, its probe has revealed that Mahadev app is an umbrella syndicate arranging online platforms for enabling illegal betting websites to enrol new users and laundering of money. The agency estimates the scam to involve more than Rs 5,500 crore.
ED also said the promoters of the app had invested the alleged proceeds of crime in cryptocurrency, diamond trade, stock and offshore real estate.
The third supplementary chargesheet filed by the agency in May 2024 identified Tibrewal as the Dubai link of the scam, who allegedly invested in stock market through FPIs. It also named Suraj Chokhani as the main associate of Tibrewal, who ED suspects to have allegedly laundered proceeds of ·crime under the guise of share investment and of being the Indian link to the scam.
According to the agency, the duo converted the cash received by the promoters through hawala channel to bank entries, using the services of professional entry operators.
At least three agencies – ED, the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) and the Directorate General of GST – are probing alleged irregularities in the Mahadev app.
