Our Bureau
New Delhi
Many celebrities are currently endorsing illegal online betting platforms and the Enforcement Directorate is looking into that matter. It is being reported that the ED has widened its investigation into illegal online betting platforms and will now majorly focus on Bollywood celebrities and former cricketers who are endorsing these online betting platforms.
Former cricketers like Harbhajan Singh, Yuvraj Singh and Suresh Raina are under serious scrutiny by the ED. Along with them Bollywood actors like Sonu Sood and Urvashi Rautela are also being questioned in the ongoing investigations.
As per the top ED officials, these celebrities are being looked into because of their promotional links with illegal online betting platforms including 1xBet, FairPlay, Parimatch and Lotus365. Some of these celebrities have been delivered the notices while some will receive it soon.
There are reports that these illegal sites are using surrogate names for their advertising campaigns. These surrogate sites use QR codes in their ad campaigns which redirect users to the betting sites which completely violates Indian law.
“These betting platforms are using surrogate names like 1xbat and 1xbat sporting lines in advertising campaigns. The ads often include QR codes that redirect users to betting sites, blatantly violating Indian law. Some celebrities have already been issued notices, while others are likely to be issued soon,” a top official from ED commented.
It is also being reported that these illegal betting platforms are breaching many Indian laws such as the Information Technology (IT) Act, the Foreign Exchange Management Act, the Prevention of Money Laundering Act, and the Benami Transactions Act. Along with that they have violated the advisories that were issued by the Ministry of Information & Broadcasting and the Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology.
These online betting platforms advertise themselves as skill-based platforms and partner themselves with celebrities and influencers to improve visibility. These platforms however are not skill-based but rely on luck and sometimes even have rigged algorithms which ultimately puts them forth as gambling operations under Indian law.
