1. On March 20, an FIR was filed against 25 celebrities, including actors Rana Daggubati and Vijay Devarakonda, for promoting illegal online betting apps.
2. The Miyapur police, Hyderabad has registered a case against several Tollywood actors and social media influencers for allegedly promoting online betting.
3. Besides Rana Daggubati and Vijay Devarakonda, the other names include Prakash Raj, Manchu Lakshmi, Praneetha, Nidhi Agarwal and 19 social media influencers.
4. The influencers who have been booked are Ananya, Sreemukhi, Siri Hanumanthu, Shyamala, Varshini, Shobha, Neha, Pandu, Padmavathi, Imran Khan, Vishnu Priya, Harsha Sai, Sunny Yadav, Tasty Teja and Ritu.
5. Some film and TV actresses and social media influencers have recently appeared before the police in connection with the investigation into online betting apps.  
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In a significant move to crack down on illegal online betting, Telangana government has constituted a five-member Special Investigation Team (SIT) to investigate cases related to online betting apps.

SIT to conduct a thorough investigation into online betting cases and submit a report in three months. The probe team will study the existing ecosystem that enables online betting and recommend necessary reforms to curb the activities.

Director General of Police (DGP) Jitender said on Monday that apart from investigating the cases, the SIT will also look into the dimensions of the betting and gaming apps and how they are affecting the citizens of Telangana.

The DGP issued an order on Sunday appointing a five-member SIT, which will function under the overall supervision of the Director General, CID and Additional DG, ClD.

In addition, the team may seek assistance from any suitable officer, financial expert, law officer, auditor or forensic investigation specialist, as required for the purpose of investigation, the order said.

The team shall evaluate legal provisions, regulations, and restrictions that can be introduced to prevent the organizing, promotion, and advertising of online betting, gaming and suggest legal action.

It will study the role and responsibilities of Union and state agencies, including the IT department, GST authorities, among others, in regulating online gaming activities. The SIT will propose suitable measures to strengthen enforcement against such activities, the order said.

Among the other terms of reference, the probe team shall recommend policy and regulatory changes for payment systems and financial institutions to detect and block transactions linked to illegal betting and gambling operations and submit these recommendations to the Reserve Bank of India.

As per the Telangana Gaming Act 2017, any kind of online betting is prohibited, police said. The DGP said the investigation will ascertain how many apps are operating in the state in spite of the ban.

The idea of the government is that there should be 'zero-tolerance' against betting and gaming apps, Jitender said.