ED files case against 29 celebs including Vijay Deverakonda, Rana Daggubati for endorsing betting apps

Others include actors Manchu Lakshmi, Nidhi Agarwal, influencers Sreemukhi, Shyamala, Shoba Shetty.

In a statement in March, Deverakonda had said he had signed a contract for skill-based games.

He had pointed out that skill-based games like Rummy are not viewed as gambles.

The FIR was registered on the basis of a complaint filed by businessman Phanindra Sarma.

Sarma said in his complaint that people are losing their hard-earned money by actively using these apps.

The complainant said he was also about to invest money in one such website but pulled himself back on being warned by his family.

Most of these celebrities were earlier booked by police in Telangana.

The FIR was registered on the basis of a complaint filed by businessman Phanindra Sarma.

Sarma said in his complaint that people are losing their hard-earned money by actively using these apps.

The complainant said he was also about to invest money in one such website but pulled himself back on being warned by his family.

The First Information Report (FIR) said as quoted by NDTV, "Thousands of lakhs of rupees are involved in these illegal platforms and it is also leading many families into distress, especially that of middle-class and lower middle-class."

"These platforms are encouraging public, especially people that are in dire need of money, to invest their hard-earned and family money into those apps/websites and slowly get addicted to them, leading to total financial collapse," it adds.