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The Enforcement Directorate has booked 29 celebrities including Telugu movie stars Vijay Devarakonda, Rana Daggubati, Lakshmi Manchu, Prakash Raj, for endorsing betting apps, Tv9 telugu reported.
At least 20 other YouTubers and influencers Harsha Sai, Ananya Nagalla, Nidhi Agarwal, Sreemukhi, Varshini Soundararajan, Siri Hanumanthu, Vasanthi Krishnan, Shobha Shetty, Amrutha Choudhary, Nayani Pavani, Neha Pathan, Pandu, Padmavati, Imran Khan, Vishnupriya, Bhaiya Sunny Yadav, Tasty Teja, Ritu Choudhary, Bandaru Supreeta have also been named.
Promoting betting apps in the name of entertainment:
A case has been registered under sections 318(4), 112, r/w 49 of the BNS, sections 3, 3(A), 4 of the Telangana Gaming Act, and sections 66D of the IT Act 2000 and 2008 and is based on an FIR filed by Cyberabad Police. It will be investigated under Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA).
The celebrities are accused of promoting betting apps and gambling in the name of entertainment, leading to huge losses for the members of the public.
Previously, Miyapur Police had also registered a case against the same celebrities for the promotion of betting apps and subsequently, the ED had taken over the investigation of the case after it was found that money laundering took place.
Many people have taken their own lives because of the debt they incurred after gambling on these illegal apps, pushing many families into financial crises, the police said in the FIR.
Vijay Devarakonda and Rana Daggubati said that they only promoted apps with legal permissions and that the agreement they signed with betting apps have ended. Prakash Raj also said that the deal he signed with the betting app in 2016 has ended.
