The Telangana Police has filed a First Information Report (FIR) against 25 people — 6 celebrities and 19 influencers — for allegedly promoting betting and gambling apps on their social media platforms. The FIR was filed by 32-year-old businessman PM Phanindra Sarma at Hyderabad's Miyapur Police Station.
Among those accused are actors Rana Daggubati, Prakash Raj, Vijay Devarakonda, Manchu Lakshmi, Praneetha, and Nidhi Agarwal. According to PTI, Sarma decided to file a report after a conversation with his youth community where he identified a disturbing trend of people falling prey to such scams, which appear trustworthy due to being endorsed by Tollywood's brightest stars.
The agreement to promote their illegal apps violates the Public Gambling Act of 1867. A case was registered under relevant sections of the BNS, Gaming Act and IT Act. Sarma, too, admitted that he had almost fallen victim to the same scams, and came close to investing in one of the apps but was stopped after his family's staunch warnings.
The businessman also alleged that celebrities and influencers agree to promote their platforms in exchange for a hefty payout and further said that these apps cause financial harm, particularly among middle-class families, by leeching onto their hard-earned money.
"This investigation underscores our commitment to protecting the public from harmful gambling and betting platforms that exploit individuals for financial gain," said K Kranthi Kumar, Inspector of Police, Police Stations Miyapur.
Who are the celebrities and influencers booked?
According to Deccan Chronicle, the complaint also names Ananya Nagella, Siri Hanumanthu, Sreemukhi, Varshini Sounderajan, Vasanthi Krishnan, Shoba Shetty, Amrutha Chowdary, Nayani Pavani, Neha Pathan, Pandu, Padhmavathi, Imran Khan, Vishnu Priya, Harsha Sai, Bayya Sunny Yadav, Shyamala, Tastyteja, Rithu Chowdhary, and Bandaru Sheshayani Supritha.
