1 CGHC010265032026 2026:CGHC:31622 NAFR HIGH COURT OF CHHATTISGARH AT BILASPUR MCRCA No. 1083 of 2026 1 - Sunil Kumar Agrawal S/o Surajbhan Singh Aged About 58 Years R/o Flat No. 105, Krishna Pride Tower, P.S. Kotra Road, Raigarh, Tehsil And Distt. Raigarh, Chhattisgarh. 2 - Pushkar Agrawal S/o Sunil Agrawal Aged About 26 Years R/o Flat No. 105, Krishna Pride Tower, P.S. Kotra Road, Raigarh, Tehsil And Distt. Raigarh, Chhattisgarh. ... Applicants versus State Of Chhattisgarh Through Station House Officer, Police Station Gharghoda, Distt. Raigarh, Chhattisgarh. ... Respondent (Cause title taken from Case Information System) For Applicants : Ms. Fouzia Mirza, Senior Advocate along with Mr. Ali Afzal Mirza, Advocate For Respondent/State : Ms. Vaishali Mahilong, Deputy G.A. Hon'ble Shri Justice Ravindra Kumar Agrawal Order on Board 23/07/2026 1. The present is an application under Section 482 of the Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita, 2023 seeking for grant of anticipatory bail to the applicants, who are apprehending their arrest in connection with Crime No. 148 of 2026, registered at Police Station Gharghoda, District Raigarh (C.G.) for the offence punishable under Section 7 of the Chhattisgarh Gambling (Prohibition) Act, 2022, Sections 111, 3(5), VED PRAKASH DEWANGAN Digitally signed by VED PRAKASH DEWANGAN Date: 2026.07.27 19:09:06 +0530 2 61(2), 336(3) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, 2023 and Section 66-D of the Information Technology Act, 2000. 2. The case of the prosecution is that, on 26.04.2026, the police of police station Gharghoda, District Raigarh received a secret information that the co-accused Bharat Goyal is engaged in playing online gambling in IPL Cricket match at Nawapara Tenda. When the police conducted raid, he was found in his shop ‘Goyal Trading’ and engaged in playing online gambling in cricket match between Kolkata Knight Riders and Lucknow Super Giants. After seeing the police personals, Bharat Goyal tried to flee, however he was apprehended and from his mobile phone, the relevant material of online gambling was recovered. On his memorandum statement, he disclosed that, he made transactions of proceeds of online gambling through the bank account of Karan Choudhary and Jasmeet Singh Bagga @ Gudda Sardar in their UPI number xxxxxxxxx@ibl and xxxxxxxx@ybl and they are maintaining the overall operation of online gambling. The bank account details of Jasmeet Bagga was obtained and the case diary was sent to Cyber cell, Raigarh. On 12.05.2026, the accused Karan Choudhary was taken into custody and his memorandum statement was recorded, in which he disclosed that he engaged in online gambling along with the other accused persons Amit Mittal, Mohit Sonwani, Rahul Khandelwal, Sulabh Khandelwal, Akash Motwani and Prakash Wadhwani and to conceal the proceeds of online gambling, they engaged in Hawala trading through the present applicants Sunil Kumar Agrawal and Pushkar Agrawal. When the present applicants have been apprehended, they disclosed the Hawala trading for concealment of 3 amount of the proceeds of online gambling at various places i.e. Raipur, Sakti, Kharsia and Delhi, and kept certain cash in his house. In the Crime No. 218 of 2026, registered at police station City Kotwali, Raigarh, Rs. 50 lakhs cash, one currency counting machine and his mobile phone have been seized from Sunil Kumar Agrawal and Rs. 52,60,300/- cash, which were kept in three bags and two mobile phones have been seized from the accused Pushkar Agrawal. They have also been made accused in the Crime No. 148 of 2026, registered at police station Gharghoda i.e. the present case, in which the applicants are apprehending their arrest. 3. Learned Senior Advocate for the applicants would submit that, the applicants are innocent and they have falsely been implicated in the offence. They initially made accused in the offence of Crime Nos. 217 of 2026 and 218 of 2026 registered at police station City Kotwali, Raigarh and on the basis of material available in that case, they have been implicated in the present case also, however there is no independent evidence in the present case. The applicants have been released on regular bail in the offence of Crime Nos. 217 of 2026 and 218 of 2026 registered at police station City Kotwali, Raigarh by the order dated 23.05.2026, passed by learned First Additional Sessions Judge, Raigarh. She would further submit that except the memorandum statement of the accused persons, there is no other evidence which connects the present applicants in the offence of online gambling or association with the other accused persons. There is no allegation that the present applicants are also engaged in online gambling, but the allegations are circulation of money of online 4 gambling through Hawala transaction. She would further submit that the applicant Pushkar Agrawal is suffering from Coronary Heart disease and had underwent angiography and required consistent medical supervision for further treatment. For his treatment, they collected cash and making plan to visit higher centre for his treatment. ******* In support of her submission, she would also refer the medical treatment documents of the applicant Pushkar Agrawal annexed in the bail application along with the covering memos dated 20.07.2026 and 23.07.2026. She would further submit that the present applicants are regularly paying their income tax and the seized cash amount from them is the legally earned money. With respect to the cash amount of Rs. 1,02,60,300/- seized from the applicants, the income tax department issue a notice to the applicants on 29.05.2026 and inquiry was also going there. The applicants have been released on regular by the learned Additional Sessions Judge, Raigarh taking into consideration the ailment of the applicant Pushkar Agrawal and thereafter the present applicants are apprehending their arrest in the offence registered at Gharghoda police station. The co-accused Bharat Goyal has been released on regular bail by the learned trial Court on 27.04.2026 under the Crime No. 148 of 2026. There is no any evidence with respect to the Hawala trading by the present applicants and the applicants are being made accused in four different offences on one recovery of cash amount. Nothing incriminating has been recovered from the mobile phone of the present applicants in Crime Nos. 217 of 2026 and 218 of 2026 of police station City Kotwali, Raigarh. The applicants are respectable persons of the society and the 5 applicant No.2 is having serious heart ailment, which needs intensive care and treatment and looking to the manner, in which the applicants are being made accused in the present case. Therefore, they may be released on anticipatory bail. 4. On the other hand, learned counsel appearing for the State opposes the submissions made by learned counsel for the applicants and submitted that, in the memorandum statements of co-accused Bharat Goyal, the name of the accused Karan Choudhary surfaced and when Karan Choudhary was interrogated, he disclosed the name of other accused persons including the present applicants, who involved in concealing the proceeds of online gambling through Hawala transaction. A huge cash amount of Rs. 1,02,60,300/- has ben seized from the present applicants. She would further submit that although the applicants have been released on regular bail in Crime Nos. 217 of 2026 and 218 of 2026, registered at police station City Kotwali, Raigarh, but they have been released on regular bail on the ground that ailment of the applicant No.2 Pushkar Agrawal. The medical documents would reveal that, the applicant Pushkar Agrawal was lastly taken treatment from 24.05.2026 to 26.05.2026 from Shri Narayana Hospital, Raipur and thereafter he was again taken treatment from 09.06.2026 to 11.06.2026 at New Life Multi-Specialty Hospital and Pain Care, Raipur for depression and anxiety with complaint of chest pain along with body pain and headache. The medical documents do not show any immediate requirement of his further treatment. Looking to the gravity of the offence, the manner in 6 which they made syndicate to conceal the money of online gambling, they are not entitled to be released on anticipatory bail. 5. I have heard the learned counsel for the parties and perused the case diary and the materials annexed with the bail application. 6. Prima facie, the material collected during investigation reveals that the allegations against the present applicants are not confined to mere online gambling, but relate to their alleged involvement in concealing and transferring the proceeds of online gambling through Hawala transactions. The memorandum statements of the co-accused persons, coupled with the subsequent seizure of Rs.1,02,60,300/- in cash, currency counting machine and mobile phones from the applicants in the connected cases, disclose sufficient material at this stage warranting a thorough investigation. The plea that the seized cash represents legally earned money and that the applicants are income tax assessees are matters of defence, which cannot be conclusively examined while considering an application for anticipatory bail. 7. The grant of regular bail to the applicants in Crime Nos. 217 of 2026 and 218 of 2026 does not automatically entitle them to anticipatory bail in the present case, which arises out of a separate FIR involving distinct allegations. Equally, the medical condition of applicant No.2 does not persuade this Court to extend the extraordinary relief of anticipatory bail. It transpires from the medical documents annexed with the bail application that applicant No.2 was treated at Asian Heart Institute and Research Centre, Mumbai from 17.04.2025 to 7 26.04.2025, where he was advised to undergo follow-up after one month from discharge along with certain diagnostic investigations. However, the records reveal that he reported for such follow-up only on 14.04.2026, nearly one year thereafter. It further appears that the applicants were released on regular bail in Crime Nos. 217 of 2026 and 218 of 2026 on 23.05.2026, and on the very next day, applicant No.2 was admitted to Shri Narayana Hospital, Raipur with complaints of chest pain, palpitation, dyspnea on exertion and breathlessness for the preceding one week. Significantly, there is no averment or material on record to indicate that while he remained in judicial custody from 13.05.2026 to 23.05.2026, in Crime Nos. 217 of 2026 and 218 of 2026, applicant No.2 sought or was denied any medical treatment at the jail hospital. In these circumstances, the medical condition of applicant No.2, by itself, does not constitute a sufficient ground for grant of anticipatory bail. Having regard to the nature and gravity of the allegations, the substantial cash seized, the alleged role attributed to the applicants in facilitating the concealment of the proceeds of online gambling through Hawala transactions, and the necessity of a fair and effective investigation, this Court is of the considered opinion that no case for grant of anticipatory bail is made out. 8. Accordingly, the present anticipatory bail application of the applicants- Sunil Kumar Agrawal and Pushkar Agrawal is rejected. Sd/- (Ravindra Kumar Agrawal) Judge ved