Big Action in IPL Betting Case: Chhattisgarh Police Arrests 26 Bookies From Maharashtra's Pune

Pune: In one of the biggest actions in IPL betting case, the Chhattisgarh Police arrested as many as 26 bookies during raids in Maharashtra’s Pune district. The accused are said to be the residents of three states like Madhya Pradesh, Chhattisgarh and Uttar Pradesh. The entire operation was carried out by the Anti Crime and Cyber Unit of the Chhattisgarh police.

A senior police official stated that the accused while sitting in Pune, were operating the betting racket during the IPL cricket matches. These bettings were being operated from the ID panels namely Reddy 67, Mahadev Panel 149 and Laser 10. During the preliminary inquiry, it surfaced that the accused used to buy one ID for around Rs 35 to 50 lakh each.

Total of 34 bookies have been arrested in the case till now, say police

As per the police, a total of 34 bookies have been arrested in the case till now.

During the arrest, the police recovered 11 laptops, 98 mobile phones, 1 calculator, 2 wifi, 3 registers, 30 pass books, 9 cheque books, 81 ATMs and 50 SIM cards from the possession of the bookies. The estimated value of the seized items has been calculated to be around Rs 25 lakh.

Further investigation into the matter revealed transactions worth over Rs 30 crore, during the analysis of the laptops and mobile phones seized from the bookies. Not only this, information about thousands of people involved in betting has also been obtained from mobile and bank accounts.

The police have registered a case under section 7 of the Gambling Prohibition Act 2022 and legal action is being taken. The police have also added, Sections 420, 120B IPC and Section 25C of the Indian Telegraph Act and Section 66C of the IT Act in the case.

According to the police, during the IPL cricket match this year, a total of 57 accused have been arrested in 09 cases so far by the team of Anti Crime and Cyber Unit.