Chattisgarh High Court
Madhur Jain vs State Of Chhattisgarh on 3 July, 2025
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2025:CGHC:30601
NAFR
HIGH COURT OF CHHATTISGARH AT BILASPUR
MCRC No. 4679 of 2025
1 - Madhur Jain S/o Late Mahendra Kumar Jain Aged About 21 Years R/o
Ward No.-09, Jain Mohalla, Pendra, District - Gaurela-Pendra-Marwahi
(C.G.)
... Applicant(s)
versus
1 - State Of Chhattisgarh Through - Station House Officer, Pendra, District
- Gaurela-Pendra-Marwahi (C.G.)
... Respondent(s)
(Cause title taken from Case Information System)
For Applicant(s) : Mr. Akshat Tiwari, Advocate
For Respondent(s)/State : Mr. Vinay Pandey, Deputy A.G.
Hon’ble Shri Justice Ravindra Kumar Agrawal
Order on Board
03/07/2025
1. This is the first bail application under Section 483 of the Bhartiya
Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita, 2023 filed by the applicant, who is
arrested on 18.12.2024, in connection with Crime No. 157 of 2024,
registered at Police Station Pendra, District Gaurela-Pendra-Marwahi
(C.G.), for the offence under Sections 420, 467, 468, 471, 120-B of
IPC, Sections 6 and 7 of Chhattisgarh Gambling (Prohibition) Act,
Digitally
signed by
VEDPRAKASH
VEDPRAKASH DEWANGAN
DEWANGAN Date:
2025.07.05
11:43:43
+0530
22022 and Sections 66-B and 66-D of Information Technology Act,
2000.
2. The case of prosecution is that on 14.05.2024, the police has
received a secrete information that in the ongoing IPL cricket match
between Delhi and Lucknow, the applicant Madhur Jain and other
accused persons are playing online gambling through rajarani betting
app including the co-accused Prakash Kenwat and Harsh Jaiswal.
When the raid was conducted by the police, 03 persons were found,
who were engaged in online gambling and during intercepting them,
one of them was fled away and 02 accused persons Prakash Kenwat
and Harsh Jaiswal were arrested. They disclosed the name of
absconding accused as Ritesh Sultania. Their mobile phones have
been seized and the mobile phone of Ritesh Sultania has also been
seized from the spot. From the data extracted from the mobile
phones, huge number of cash transactions and chatting with respect
to gambling were recovered. From the co-accused Prakash Kenwat,
Rs. 800/- cash and from Harsh Jaiswal Rs. 700/- cash have also
been seized. These two accused persons have disclosed that the link
for online gambling are provided by the co-accused Ritesh Sultania
and the present applicant Madhur Jain and on their instance, they
are engaged in playing online gambling. During the investigation,
various connected links were opened, which disclosed the
involvement of other accused persons, who either engaged in issuing
the SIM cards or engaged in online cash transactions/providing bank
accounts. On 06.07.2024, the co-accused Ritesh Sultania was
arrested and on his memorandum statement, he disclosed that he
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purchased the master ID username password of silverexch.com
betting app and with the collusion of present applicant Madhur Jain,
03 mobile numbers 9111102224, 9111102225 and 9111102226 were
purchased in the name of other persons and by exchanging the
rajaranibook.com and bigbexchange betting apps, they are engaged
in online gambling. The allegation against the present applicant is
that, the mobile number 9111102224 is registered in the name of
present applicant Madhur Jain, which has been reflected for playing
online gambling and providing ID password for the same and only
after giving permission by the present applicant, the payment of
online transaction are to be made. The charge sheet against 10
accused persons have been filed by the police and at that time, the
present applicant was absconding. The present applicant is arrested
on 18.12.2024, hence this bail application.
3. Learned counsel for the applicant would submit that there is no direct
evidence against the applicant in the case regarding his involvement,
either in conspiracy with other accused persons or engaged in
playing online gambling. There is no incriminating material recovered
from the mobile phone of the present applicant. Except for the
memorandum statement, nothing substantive evidence is available in
the charge sheet against the applicant. The mobile phone, which is
said to have been registered in the name of present applicant, was
already surrendered by him on 09.01.2024 and it was allotted to
another person, who is Durgesh Kumar by the Airtel service provider
company, and therefore, there is no connection of the applicant with
the said mobile number, which belongs to some other person. The
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screenshot extracted from the mobile phone is not sufficient to prima
facie hold the involvement of the applicant in online gambling along
with other accused persons. There is no cash transaction either in
the account of present applicant or through his mobile phone. The
applicant is in jail since 18.12.2024, final adjudication of the case will
take its own time. Out of 16 witnesses, 07 witnesses have been
examined before the learned trial Court and none of them have
supported the prosecution’s case. The applicant is having the
medical issues and required continuous treatment. He would also
submit that none of the persons have complained about cheating by
the applicant. The applicant is a sole bread earner of his family, and
therefore he may be released on bail.
4. On the other hand, learned counsel appearing for the State opposes
the submissions made by learned counsel for the applicant and
submitted that from the investigation the name of the present
applicant appears to be the main accused along with Ritesh Sultania
that they engaged in playing online gambling through rajarani and
silverexche.com, in which pamphlets were published/exhibited in the
mobile phone in mobile app, in which the mobile number of
9111102224 is reflected, by which the money transactions are to be
made through Google Pay, PhonePe and Paytm. This mobile betting
app was detected and found in the mobile phone of the other
accused persons. From its verification from the service provider
company, it is reported that the said mobile number 9111102224 is
registered in the name of present applicant Madhur Jain and he is
the owner of said mobile number. He would further submit that from
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the chatting of mobile seized from other accused persons, various
transactions have been detected. The third bail application of Ritesh
Sultania has already been rejected by this Court vide order dated
27.03.2025, passed in MCRC No. 2457 of 2025. He would further
submit that from the documents annexed with the bail application, it
reflects that up to 12.12.2024, 08 witnesses have already been
examined, therefore, the trial of the case is in advance stage.
Therefore, considering the nature of offence and the manner in which
they organized the crime of online gambling, the present applicant is
not entitled for bail.
5. I have heard the learned counsel for the parties and perused the
case diary.
6. Considering the submissions made by the parties, considering the
material collected during the investigation and the allegation against
the present applicant regarding his involvement in online gambling
along with other accused persons, evidence of registration of mobile
number 9111102224 in the name of present applicant, the screenshot
and other data recovered from the mobile phone of accused persons,
memorandum statements of other accused persons and seizure of
various mobile phones and laptops, biometric thumb scanner
machine, huge number of SIM cards, etc. there is sufficient prima
facie evidence in the case, which shows the involvement of the
present applicant in the offence in question. The third bail application
of co-accused Ritesh Sultania was rejected vide order dated
27.03.2025. Further, considering that out of 16 witnesses up to
12.12.2024, 08 witnesses have already been examined and the trial
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is in advance stage, the gravity of the offence, the manner in which
the offence is organized and impact of the alleged offence, I am not
inclined to release the applicant on bail.
7. Accordingly, the bail application of present applicant Madhur Jain is
rejected.
Sd/-
(Ravindra Kumar Agrawal)
Judge
ved