The Enforcement Directorate (ED) on Friday provisionally attached movable and immovable assets worth ₹7.93 crore belonging to former cricketers Yuvraj Singh and Robin Uthappa, along with several film actors, in connection with a money-laundering probe linked to an alleged illegal offshore betting platform.
Those whose assets have been attached include actors Sonu Sood, Urvashi Rautela, Neha Sharma, Bengali actor Ankush Hazra, and Mimi Chakraborty, a former Member of Parliament. Assets belonging to the mother of model and actor Urvashi Rautela were also attached.
The action was taken under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA).
The probe stems from multiple First Information Reports (FIRs) registered by police in various states against operators of the online betting platform 1xBet.
According to the ED, 1xBet and its surrogate brands — 1xBat and 1xBat Sporting Lines — were involved in promoting and facilitating illegal online betting and gambling operations across India.
The agency alleged that the celebrities “knowingly entered into endorsement agreements” with foreign entities to promote 1xBet through surrogate branding. These promotions, the ED said, were carried out in exchange for payments routed via foreign intermediaries to conceal the illicit origin of funds linked to proceeds of crime generated from illegal betting activities.
Investigators further claimed that 1xBet operated in India without authorisation and used social media, online videos, and print advertisements to target Indian users. Endorsement payments were layered through overseas entities to disguise their illegal source.
Earlier, on October 6, the ED had attached assets worth ₹11.14 crore belonging to former cricketers Shikhar Dhawan and Suresh Raina in the same case.
“The ED cautions that illegal betting and gambling platforms cause serious economic harm and are widely used for money laundering and other unlawful activities,” the agency said.
It also warned celebrities and social media influencers against endorsing or promoting illegal betting and gambling platforms, directly or indirectly, and urged the public to report suspicious advertisements or transactions to law enforcement agencies.