1 2025:CGHC:55494 NAFR HIGH COURT OF CHHATTISGARH AT BILASPUR MCRCA No. 1660 of 2025 1 - Utkarsh Ramani S/o Late Nandlal Ramani Aged About 31 Years R/o House No. 222, Sant Kanwarram Chowk, Bhartiya State Bank Nevra Ke Pass, Thana Tilda Nevra, Tehsil Tilda, District Raipur C.G. ... Applicant(s) versus 1 - State of Chhattisgarh Through Police Station Tilda Nevra, District Raipur C.G. ... Non-applicant(s) For Applicant(s) : Mr. Vikas Kumar Pandey and Mr. T. R. Patel, Advocate. For Non-applicant(s) : Mr. Neeraj Sharma, Dy. Advocate General. Hon’ble Shri Justice Ravindra Kumar Agrawal, J. Order on Board 13/11//2025 1. This is the first bail application filed by the applicants under Section 482 of Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita, 2023 (in short “BNSS”) for grant of anticipatory bail to the applicant, who is apprehending his arrested on in Crime No. 125 of 2025, registered at Police Station Tilda-Nevra, for the offence under Sections 111, 318(4), 338, 336(3), 340(2), 61(2), 112(2) of Bhartiya Nyaya Sanhita, 2023 (in short “BNS”), Section 7 of the Chhattisgarh Gambling (Prohibition) Act, 2022, and Section 4(a) of the Public Gambling Act, (C.G. Amendment Act) 1976. ALOK SHARMA Digitally signed by ALOK SHARMA Date: 2025.11.13 18:44:02 +0530 2 2. The prosecution’s case in brief is that, on 03-04-2025, the police received secret information that the co-accused Harsh Panjwani is engaged in online gambling through the “Gajanand App” in his house. During a raid, he was intercepted by the police. Upon interrogation, he disclosed that he engaged in online gambling through “fair-play gaming panel No. 07, 12 and 13 of Gajanand App”. From him, 04 mobile phones, cash of Rs. 3,400/-, 05 Bank-passbooks, 08 cheque-books, 08 ATM cards, 06 account books, Aadhar Card, Pan Card and Passport, have been seized. From the mobile phone of the co-accused, Harsh Panjwani, the data was extracted, in which it was found that he was running a mobile group in the name of “New Feedback”. The involvement of the other accused persons, namely Shiva Sen, mobile number 9630118110, Khubi Ram Patel, mobile number 7733995585 and Shailendra, mobile number 7415942378, was found, who were actively involved in the running of said “New Feedback” group and fair play gaming panel numbers 7,12 and 13. They used the mule bank account for the transaction of money received through online gambling. From the analysis of the mobile phone of Harsh Panjwani, the SDR mobile number of Govind Lalwani was recovered and found that he also involved in online gambling. From the memorandum statement of Sonu @ Shiva Sen, Khubi Ram Patel and Shailendra @ Sonu, it comes that the co-accused Nandu Lalwani, took the SIM card of mobile Nos. 7415942378, 7733995585 and 9630118110, in their names fraudulently, and engaged in playing online gambling through panels No. 7, 12 and 13. Nandu Lalwani was also arrested by the police, and his memorandum statement was also recorded. He disclosed in his memorandum statement that he was connected with 3 panel No. 13 of “Gajanand App” through his mobile No. 8982439948 and thereafter destroyed the said SIM. During the investigation, the details of the suspected bank account were obtained, and it was frozen. During the investigation, the name of co-accused Sunny Wadhwani also came and in his memorandum statement, the involvement of the present applicant was disclosed. From the memorandum statement of Sunny Wadhwani and the SDR of mobile number of the applicant 1803565620 his involvement in the Gajanand App was discovered and from the chatting through mobile phone with the other accused persons with respect to Gajanand Book App there are sufficient evidnce found against the applicant and the role of the present applicant is disclosed in association with the other accused persons and the syndicate of the accused persons. Thus, the present applicant Utkarsh Ramani is apprehending his arrest. 3. Learned counsel appearing for the applicant would submit that the investigating agency has acted most arbitrarily, and it had nothing but an ill-motivated and mala fide intention to implicate the applicant in the offence. He has no connection or association in any way, either with the affairs of the business of “Gajanand App” or have receiving the proceeds of crime. He would further submit that the prosecution has failed to establish the link between the present applicant with the alleged offence. He would further submit that in order to save the other accused persons, the present applicant has been implicated in the offence. There is no evidence against the present applicant that he was actively involved in operating any penal of “Gajanand App” or any other betting app, but it is alleged that he was actively engaged in 4 participated in running the “Gajanand App”. He would further submit that there is no evidence collected by the prosecution that the mobile phones and SIM cards, which are allegedly seized from the co- accused persons, are actually used in an online betting app. There is no connection between the applicant with that of “Gajanand App”, or “fair play gaming panel Nos. 7, 12 and 13. The prosecution agency has collected the electronic evidence, for which there is no basis that the applicant is involved in the offence. There are no ingredients of cheating in the material collected during the investigation. No offence of either cheating, forgery of valuable security, using as genuine a forged document as genuine, any criminal conspiracy, or even causing the disappearance of any evidence. The electronic evidence collected by the prosecution is a very weak type of evidence, on which there is no possibility of sustaining a conviction of the applicant. The applicant is a young boy of 31 years of age, having a good reputation in the locality and community. Therefore, he may be granted anticipatory bail. 4. Per contra, learned counsel for the State vehemently opposed the submissions of learned counsel for the applicants and has submitted that during the investigation, from the memorandum statement of Sunny Wadhwani the name of present applicant comes that he also involved in online gambling along with other accused persons and they held a meeting in the house of co-accused Nandlal Lalwani to organize the affairs of running the betting app. He would also submits that the mobile number of the applicant is connected with the “Gajanand App” and from its SDR there is active participation of the applicant found with the said “Gajanand App” from the chatting of Gajanand Book App 5 between the accused persons the involvement of the present applicant also appears. From the analysis of mobile phones of other co-accused persons, it was also found that they are actively engaged in online gambling and money transactions through mule bank accounts. The other accused persons are still absconding. He would further submit that from the memorandum statement of the co-accused, the involvement of the applicant in the offence in question has been duly connected. He would also submit that the regular bail application of co- accused Nandlal @ Nandu Lalwani and Govind @ Baban Lalwani has been rejected by this court vide order dated 16-09-2025 passed in MCrC No. 6748/2025 and the anticiparty bail application of the co- accused Mukesh Motwani has been rejected by this Court on 22.09.2025 in MCRCA No. 1413/2025. In the present case, there is sufficient evidence available against the present applicant that he is also involved in the alleged offence and looking to the seriousness of the offence, he is not entitled to be released on anticipatory bail. 5. I have heard learned counsel for the parties and perused the material placed in the present case by both parties, and also the case diary. 6. In the present case, from the memorandum statement of co-accused Sunny Wadhwani, the entire affairs of the running of “Gajanand App” and involvement of the accused persons including the applicant have been disclosed. From the SDR of the mobile number of the applicant his engagement with the “Gajanand App” have also been found and his mobile No. 8103565620 is linked with the “Gajanand App” and the e- mail id of other accused persons and his active participation with chatting with the other accused persons have been disclosed during 6 the investigation. He disclosed that the present applicant was actively involved in online gambling through “Gajanand App” and money transaction received through illegal betting. From the memorandum statement of Sunny Wadhwani, active participation of the present applicant Utkarsh Ramani is disclosed with the association with other co-accused person in online gambling. From the electronic evidence of mobile devices of other accused persons and the data extracted from it, his engagement and close connection are also revealed. 7. The Hon'ble Supreme Court in the case of Y.S. Jagan Mohan Reddy Vs. CBI, reported in (2013) 7 SCC 439 has held in para 34 and 35 of its judgment that "34. Economic offences constitute a class apart and need to be visited with a different approach in the matter of bail. The economic offences having deep-rooted conspiracies and involving huge loss of public funds need to be viewed seriously and considered as grave offences affecting the economy of the country as a whole and thereby posing serious threat to the financial health of the country. 35. While granting bail, the court has to keep in mind the nature of accusations, the nature of evidence in support thereof, the severity of the punishment which conviction will entail, the character of the accused, circumstances which are peculiar to the accused, reasonable possibility of securing the presence of the accused at the trial, reasonable apprehension of the witnesses being tampered with, the larger interests of the public/State and other similar considerations. 8. Having considered the rival submissions made by respective parties, as also from the material produced in the present case, it is not acceptable that the present applicant did not know about the transactions of “Gajanand App” and the money transaction. Seizure of 7 mobile phones and SIM cards from the co-accused persons and statements of the witnesses clearly demonstrate their association with the others, who were associated with “Gajanand App” and “Fair Play”. Denial by the applicant itself is not sufficient to consider prima facie that there is no mens rea of the applicant for the said offence. Although the statements of the witnesses are required to be tested at the time of trial; however, for the consideration of an anticipatory bail application, the statements of the witnesses are relevant. Further, the regular bail application of co-accused persons Nandlal @ Nandu Lalwani and Govind @ Baban Lalwani has been rejected on 16-09-2025 in MCRC No. 6748/2025 and anticipatory bail application of co-accused Mukesh Motwani has been rejected on 22.09.2025 in MCRCA No. 1413/2025. 9. As has been discussed hereinabove, it cannot be said that there is no involvement of the applicant in the offence in question. It is an organized crime having various facets of its complexion; therefore, further considering the nature of the offence and material collected during the investigation, this Court is satisfied that there is prima facie evidence for believing that the applicant is involved in the offence; therefore, I am not inclined to release the applicant on anticipatory bail. 10. Consequently, the present anticipatory bail application filed by the applicant, Utkarsh Ramani is rejected. Sd/- (Ravindra Kumar Agrawal) Judge Alok