Udhayanidhi will respond to criticism through performance: Tamil Nadu CM Stalin
Tiruchirappalli (PTI): Though Udhayanidhi Stalin may be new to a ministerial post, he is a familiar face in Tamil Nadu and he would respond to criticism of his elevation through performance, Chief Minister M K Stalin said here on Thursday.
Indicating that political adversaries would be proved wrong, Stalin said Udhayanidhi was capable of proving his mettle when it comes to administration.
"Though he has been made a Minister now, he is not new to you (people). There was criticism during his elevation as a Minister. I am sure Udhayanidhi will rise up to the occasion and respond to the criticism through his performance," the Chief Minister said at an event got up here to distribute government welfare assistance to several hundreds of beneficiaries in the district.
Udhayanidhi, son of Stalin and great grandson of late DMK stalwart M Karunanidhi, was sworn in as Minister of Youth Welfare and Sports Development a fortnight ago.
Pointing out that when he became a legislator, Udhayanidhi asked the people to judge him by his performance, the Chief Minister said the former conducted himself in such a manner that he won appreciation from several quarters.
"I have great expectations. He (Udhayanidhi) has been conferred with numerous responsibilities including poverty alleviation, special programme implementation and women's development. I am sure he will prove his abilities and further improve the departments," Stalin said.
The Chief Minister announced that an Olympic Academy would be established in Tiruchirappalli to create an opportunity for sportspersons to train and distinguish themselves at international events.
This would be among the 4 such facilities to be set up by the government in the State.
The Chief Minister, on the occasion, distributed welfare aids valued at Rs 79.6 crore, to 22,716 beneficiaries, inaugurated 5,635 completed projects implemented at a cost of Rs 238.40 crore besides laid foundation stones for 5,951 new initiatives worth Rs 308.29 crore thus totalling Rs 625.75 crore.
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ED records statement of cricketer Yuvraj Singh in online betting app case
New Delhi (PTI): Former Indian cricketer Yuvraj Singh on Tuesday appeared before the Enforcement Directorate (ED) for questioning in a money laundering case linked to an online betting app named 1xBet, officials said.
Singh (43), wearing a white T-shirt and pant, reached the agency's office in central Delhi around 12 noon accompanied by his legal team.
The investigating officer of the case questioned the all-rounder and left-hand batter and recorded his statement under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA), the officials said.
An influencer named Anveshi Jain also appeared before the ED for questioning in the same case.
The federal probe agency has questioned former cricketers Suresh Raina, Shikhar Dhawan and Robin Uthappa apart from former TMC MP and actor Mimi Chakraborty and Bengali actor Ankush Hazra over the last few weeks as part of this investigation.
Actor Sonu Sood has been summoned for Wednesday by the ED in the same case.
The investigation into the operations of the 1xBet betting app is part of the ED's wider probe against such platforms on allegations of duping numerous people of crores of rupees and reportedly evading a huge amount of direct and indirect taxes.
According to Curacao-registered 1xBet, it is a globally recognised bookmaker with 18 years in the betting industry.
The brand's customers can place bets on thousands of sporting events, with the company's website and app available in 70 languages, as per the company information available on its website.
Some more sportspersons, movie actors, online influencers and celebrities are expected to be questioned by the agency in the coming days as part of this probe.
The ED may also soon initiate the process to attach assets of individuals in this case who are found using the alleged proceeds of crime generated from the promotional activities of the app. A chargesheet will be filed subsequently before a court, as per the sources.
The agency's line of investigation, according to sources, is to know from the celebrities as to how they were contacted by the said betting company seeking their endorsement, the nodal person(s) for contact in India, the mode of payment (cash through hawala or banking channel) and place of the payment (in India or abroad), etc. The agency, while recording the statements of the cricketers and actors, is understood to be asking them if they knew that online betting and gaming was illegal in India. It has also asked them to furnish a copy of their contracts and all relevant email and paper documentation made by them with 1xBet.
The agency is also looking at the end use of the money taken by the celebrities to check if any of them can be categorised as the "proceeds of crime" under the PMLA, according to the sources.
The Union government recently banned real money online gaming in India by bringing a legislation.
The ED, during a recent national meeting of its senior officers in Jammu and Kashmir, has also decided to initiate "focused strategies" to investigate financial crimes arising from this sector linked to alleged illegal betting and gaming.
According to estimates by market analysis firms and probe agencies undertaken before the government ban, there were about 22 crore Indian users in various such online betting apps out of which half were regular users.
The online betting app market in India was estimated to be worth over USD 100 billion which was stated to be growing at the rate of 30 per cent, according to experts. The government has told Parliament that it has issued 1,524 orders from 2022 till June 2025 to block online betting and gambling platforms.
