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On June 12, the Mumbai Zonal Unit of the Enforcement Directorate (ED) conducted a search at 19 locations in Mumbai and Pune as part of the ongoing investigation in the case of Fairplay, a subsidiary app of the Mahadev Betting app. The app was allegedly involved in illegal broadcasting of cricket including IPL matches, and various online betting activities including Lok Sabha elections.
The next day, ED released a statement, “Fairplay made agreements through foreign-based entities in Dubai and Curacao with Indian agencies representing celebrities. It was found that no due diligence was performed by Indian agencies regarding Fairplay before executing the agreements for its promotion."
The statement further added, "Investigation revealed that funds from these companies have been siphoned off to overseas shell entities based out of Hong Kong SAR, China and Dubai. More than 400 bank accounts of shell entities were found to be used for these purposes which are under examination along with trailing/utilisation of funds collected from the public by Fairplay," the agency added.
The ED registered a case against Fairplay about money laundering, causing a loss of more than 100 crores to Viacom 18 due to illegal streaming of IPL matches. In the complaint, Viacom18 named eight companies along with seven other online apps for illegally streaming its content.
The app gained popularity through endorsements and advertisements by various Bollywood celebrities. According to sources, more than 40 Bollywood celebrities are under investigation for promoting Fair play during the IPL 2023. Maharashtra Cyber Cell has recorded statements of managers of actors like Sanjay Dutt, Jacqueline Fernandez, and Badshah. Bollywood actress Tamannaah Bhatia had also been summoned for a statement by the cell. The ED has issued summons to Ranbir Kapoor, Shradhha Kapoor and several other celebrities for their promotional activities for the betting app.