Rescue Religare from its takeover battle dust-up

After allegations related to betting app Mahadev reached Dabur's owners, they contended it's an attempt to thwart their bid for Religare. Amid political intrigue, the law must prevail

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Poll-season verbal wars, with hard allegations hurled across camps, are a given in India. An illegal betting app called Mahadev recently made news as part of a political exchange of charges over a scandal under investigation, with BJP and Congress leaders accusing each other of being in cahoots with the app's owners. The case got curiouser after its widening web cast a shadow on a business proposal. Allegations surfaced that members of the Delhi-based Dabur Group's promoter family of Burmans, as co-owners of an Indian Premier League team, had links with a cricket betting racket allied with the scandalous app. On Tuesday, the family flatly denied any involvement and described the reports not just "false and baseless," but also as an "arm twisting" move made by "vested interests in an attempt to block the acquisition of Religare Enterprises Ltd by the Burman family." This refers to the family's open offer to Religare's shareholders, a buy-out drama that has unfolded since late September.