Ranbir Kapoor and Kapil Sharma are being questioned by police after allegations that celebrities promoted the “illegal” Mahadev betting app
BOLLYWOOD star Ranbir Kapoor and comedian Kapil Sharma are being questioned by police over an alleged money laundering scheme.
According to the Indian law enforcement agency, the stars are said to have received money from the illegal betting app Mahadev and are currently under close observation.
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Apart from the actor and comedian, several other celebrities were also called in for questioning – including actress Huma Qureshi and Hina Khan.
The stars are said to have promoted the illegal app in the past and are now being summoned as part of the investigation.
While none of the celebrities are currently believed to be involved in the scam, they will be called for routine questioning in the coming days, the ED has confirmed.
The ED is probing the Mahadev app, which provides platforms for illegal betting websites
The app’s owners, Saurav Chandrakar and Ravi Uppal, are accused of laundering money through a complex network of fake bank accounts.
The investigative agency also alleged that large-scale illegal transactions were carried out between various offshore accounts through the platform.
Betting is currently illegal in India and banned under the latest online gambling laws.
The app was reported to the investigation agency when Saurav Chandrakar – one of the promoters of the online betting platform – got married in Ras Al-Khaimah in a lavish wedding worth Rs 200 crore.
The entire wedding was reportedly paid for in cash.
Several Bollywood stars – including Ranbir Kapoor – attended the wedding, which took place in the United Arab Emirates earlier this year.
Kapoor is said to have received a large sum of money from the app’s organizers to appear at a lavish wedding event.
He was also a social media influencer for the online betting platform and received payments for promotional activities – reports have confirmed this.
A close source in the investigation agency said, “Ranbir Kapoor has been summoned to understand the betting business transactions.”
“At this point he has not yet been summoned as a defendant. His questioning is important to know his knowledge about the sources of money he received.”
“It may shed light on the plans of the organizers and their association.”
According to the Hindustan Times17 other Bollywood celebrities are involved in this process.
These include Shraddha Kapoor, Tiger Shroff and Sonakshi Sinha.
In recent searches, the ED has seized several accounts and assets worth ₹236 crore that were directly or indirectly linked to the online betting platform.
The probe agency has initiated the process of filing a complaint against Saurav Chandrakar and Ravi Uppal, who are the main promoters of the app.
Both bosses manage the operational activities for the online gaming platform from Dubai.
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