Hyderabad: Taking a serious note of celebrities and social media influencers promoting betting apps, senior IPS officer and TGSRTC Managing Director VC Sajjanar here on Thursday urged the people to stay away from apps. Here are excerpts:
Q. Several innocent people are falling prey to betting apps these days. What is your suggestion to them?
A. It’s always advisable for the people, especially youth to stay away from these apps that exploit them financially leaving them in lurch. The youngsters must focus on their career rather than investing in betting apps and losing their hard-earned money.
Q. In spite of knowing the consequences, several celebrities and influencers are promoting these apps. Any strong message from the police department?
A. The influencers and celebrities promoting such apps are no less than cyber terrorists. Their actions have devastating consequences, especially on vulnerable audiences. It’s really inspirational to see people lodging police complaints against such individuals. This is a significant step toward deterring others from promoting these dangerous apps. Everyone has a responsibility to contribute to a safer future, and that starts with refusing to endorse or promote such destructive platforms.
Q. You launched a massive campaign against the ill-effects of betting apps. How is the response?
A. The Multi-Level-Marketing (MLM) schemes often target adults but betting apps target teenagers leaving them in problems unnecessarily. As far as response is concerned, we’re making every effort to sensitize the people through social media and the response is overwhelming.
Since the commencement of the campaign a week ago, we have got more than 90 million digital footprints. I’m not entirely satisfied, but I’m somewhat relieved that our exercise has reached many people. I shared over 100 awareness posts on betting apps and various online frauds on my social media platforms in the last couple of months.
Q. What action the celebrities and social media influencers would face for promoting betting apps?
A. The police are actively registering cases, and the law will take its course. It’s crucial that accountability is enforced to prevent further harm. As an investigative agency, we remain committed to protecting lives and ensuring justice. Our proactive approach has saved countless individuals from falling victim to these predatory schemes, and we will continue to lead the charge in safeguarding our community.
Q. What is the mechanism adopted to tackle the menace of betting apps?
A. The police in Telangana have always been at the forefront to deal with illegal schemes, whether it was MLM scams or the exploitation by microfinance institutions in the early 2000 and actions that eventually led to the formation of regulatory Acts. Our efforts to curb MLMs and microfinance scams have led to significant reforms in RBI guidelines, SEBI, and other agencies and departments. More recently, we have taken decisive action against illegal loan apps and, now, betting apps.
