April 26 (Punjab Khabarnama) : Maharashtra cyber cell summoned actor Tamannaah Bhatia in connection with the alleged promotion of the viewing of Indian Premier League (IPL) matches on a subsidiary app of the Mahadev online gaming and betting application, officials said on Thursday. The actor, known for films like Baahubali and the Netflix anthology Lust Stories 2, has been asked to appear before the Maharashtra cyber personnel on April 29.
Celebs involved in the case
As per ANI, Tamannaah and Sanjay Dutt reportedly endorsed FairPlay’s subsidiary app of the Mahadev betting app. They were summoned by the Maharashtra cyber cell for allegedly promoting the viewing of the IPL matches on the betting app.
Tamannaah and Sanjay have been called to record their statement as a witness in the case. Sanjay, citing his busy work schedule, has requested for a later date. The Maharashtra cyber cell has already recorded the statements of singer Badshah and the managers of actors Sanjay Dutt and Jacqueline Fernandez in the case.
What is illegal IPL streaming case?
The FairPlay app, a betting exchange platform, offers a wide variety of sports and entertainment leisure gambling. Some of the IPL matches were also streamed illegally on the app in 2023, officials said citing a complaint in this connection. The FairPlay app did not have permission from Viacom 18, which held exclusive broadcasting rights for the cricket tournament. The alleged illegal streaming led to huge losses for the broadcaster.
As per 2023 News18 report, Viacom18 had the Intellectual Property Rights (IPR) to stream the IPL 2023 matches. But FairPlay was parallelly screening the cricket tournament from March 2023 to May 2023. Viacom18 filed a complaint with the Maharashtra cyber cell over digital copyright.
Celebrities under the ED’s scanner
The Mahadev app is under the scanner of various investigation agencies over alleged illegal transactions and betting. In 2023, Kapil Sharma, Sonakshi Sinha, Huma Qureshi and Hina Khan were under the scanner of the Enforcement Directorate (ED) in connection with the Mahadev money-laundering case. ED had also asked actor Ranbir Kapoor to appear at the agency’s office in Raipur in connection with the Mahadev online betting app case.
ED also suspected several other A-lister celebrities and certain sports personalities, who promoted the app or mingled with its promoters, while attending or performing at the company’s head Sourabh Chandrakar’s wedding in 2023 and the company’s success party in September 2022.
What is Mahadev betting app case?
The Mahadev app enabled illegal betting on various online games like poker, card games, chance games, badminton, tennis, football and cricket. The app is allegedly run by Dubai-based Sourabh and Ravi Uppal. The company operates from Dubai where betting is legal, however, it’s illegal in India.
