Paid ads for sites like Junglee Rummy, A23, JeetWin, Parimatch, Lotus365, and others that are thought to be involved in large-scale money laundering are at the center of the case.
According to the Enforcement Directorate (ED), 29 people, including actors, TV hosts, social media influencers, and YouTubers, have been charged with marketing illicit betting apps in violation of the Public Gambling Act, 1867. The Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA) covers this action. It was taken after five different FIRs were filed in Panjagutta, Miyapur, Cyberabad, Suryapet, and Visakhapatnam.
The lawsuit is about paid ads for sites like Junglee Rummy, A23, JeetWin, Parimatch, Lotus365, and others that are thought to be involved in money laundering on a big scale. The ED thinks that the people who promoted these apps got a lot of money for doing so. Many of these apps pretended to be skill-based games but were said to let people gamble without being detected.
The ECIR lists actors Rana Daggubati, Prakash Raj, Vijay Devarakonda, Manchu Lakshmi, Praneetha, and Nidhi Agarwal, as well as TV and media personalities like Ananya Nagella, Siri Hanumanthu, Sreemukhi, Varshini Sounderajan, Vasanthi Krishnan, Shoba Shetty, Amrutha Chowdary, Nayani Pavani, Neha Pathan, Pandu, Padhmavathi, Imran Khan, Vishnu Priya, and Shyamala. It also lists digital creators like Harsha Sai, Bayya Sunny Yadav, Tastyteja, Rithu Chowdhary, Bandaru Sheshayani Supritha, Ajay, Sunny, Sudheer, and the YouTube channel “Local Boy Nani.” Kiran Goud and the people in charge of the betting sites have also been named.
Some of the campaigns were said to be disguised as entertainment or social service, which made people frustrated and led to police complaints from people who said they lost money. One person who complained said they lost more than ₹3 crore because they were swayed by YouTube ads with these people in them.
The people named in the case are likely to be called in for questioning soon. Several of them have publicly denied doing anything unethical, saying that they ended endorsement deals as soon as they found out about the ethical and legal issues.
The person who complained said that he had been going to training courses in Ameerpet and had seen many pupils talking about betting applications on social media. “He said in his complaint that these platforms, which are heavily advertised online, were aimed at young adults and the general public, making it easy to gamble.” He asserted that the apps were exacerbating consumers’ financial issues.
The person who complained said that these betting apps had an effect on him and that he had thought about putting money into one but didn’t since his family warned him not to. He gave information on influencers who are said to be pushing these platforms, such as their social media usernames and the names of betting apps.
The complaint says that these apps have made it possible for transactions worth thousands of crores and asked the government to act quickly to stop them from spreading. The police claimed, “He also said he would help with the investigation.”
The Punjagutta police opened a case based on the complaint, using Section 318(4) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS), Sections 3, 3A, and 4 of the Gaming Act, and Section 66D of the IT Act. There are investigations going on.
Police have named several YouTubers and influencers who have promoted gambling apps on social media. These include Imran Khan (Jetx – Pari Match), Vishnu Priya (777 – www.Taj777book.com), Harsha Sai (Pari Match App), Shyamala (Andhra 365 App), Tasty Teja, Rithu Chowdhary, Bandaru Sheshayani Supritha, Kiran Goud, Ajay (www.winbuzz), Sunny (Target Games), and Sudheer (Cricket Win Analyst – Telegram).
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