As a part of the ongoing investigations into Fairplay, an online betting exchange platform, the Enforcement Directorate (ED), Mumbai zonal office, conducted search operations at 19 locations in Mumbai and Pune on Wednesday. The ED is pursuing investigations against Fairplay, which is a subsidiary application of Mahadev online gaming app, under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA), 2002. It has been alleged that Fairplay had illegally streamed some of the IPL matches in the recently concluded season. Investigations are also being conducted into the alleged involvement of the platform in online betting on sports and major events including the recent Lok Sabha polls.

According to ED, during the search operations, movable assets including cash, bank funds, demat account holdings, and luxury watches worth approximately R8 crore were seized. “Various incriminating documents and digital devices were also recovered (during the search) and being further examined,” officials said.