Rs 17 crore cash recovered after raids on Kolkata-based gaming app operator

The Enforcement Directorate on Saturday seized Rs 17.32 crore in cash after it raided the promoters of a Kolkata-based mobile gaming app company as part of a money-laundering investigation.

The agency is looking at some "political links" of the app promoters and wants to ascertain the actual beneficiaries of this cash, even as it is investigating the possible routing of the funds spent by gullible gamers through some "Chinese-controlled" entities.

A picture released by the federal agency showed bundles of seized Rs 500 currency notes along with a few in the denomination of Rs 2,000 and Rs 200 stacked together on a bed.

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The searches were conducted at half-a-dozen locations of the gaming app named 'E-Nuggets' and its promoter identified as Aamir Khan and others, the Enforcement Directorate said in a statement.

The money laundering case stems from an FIR filed by the Kolkata Police against the company and its promoters in February 2021 on a complaint filed by the Federal Bank authorities.

Initially, the users of the app were rewarded with a commission and the balance in the wallet could be withdrawn hassle-free. Later, the withdrawal facility was stopped and all data, including profile information, was wiped off the app servers, according to the ED.