Fans of South film industry woke up to a shock on Thursday as 29 film celebs, YouTubers and influencers were booked by the Enforcement Directorate (ED) for allegedly promoting illegal betting apps. The biggest names on this list were that of Vijay Deverakonda, Rana Daggubati, Lakshmi Manchu, and others.
The other names on the list are Prakash Raj, Nidhhi Agerwal, Ananya Nagalla, Pranitha Subhash, anchors Sreemukhi and Shyamala, YouTuber Harsha Sai, Bayya Sunny Yadav, and "Local Boy" Nani, among others.
What is the illegal betting app case?
According to News18, the investigation began after businessman Phanindra Sharma filed a complaint claiming that these influential celebs were promoting such betting apps, encouraging young and innocent people to invest their hard-earned money into the scam, and leaving them in financial distress later. A FIR was then registered against the celebs on March 19 this year by the Cyberabad Police.
The ED has now taken over the investigation under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA) and has launched an investigation into the remuneration that the celebs named in the FIR received for promoting the illegal betting apps. Cops said that the apps involve transactions worth thousands of crores, which they have accumulated by luring the youth into the betting trap, promising them easy and hefty returns.
Vijay, Rana's teams issue statements
Vijay Deverakonda's team clarified that he only promoted a skill-based gaming platform, A23, and the campaign had ended in 2023. Rana Daggubati claimed that he complied with legal norms while associating with the apps. Prakash Raj admitted that he did promote a betting app in 2016 but later distanced himself from it after realising that it was not the right thing to do.
The next course of action in the illegal betting apps case has not been shared by the ED yet.
