New Delhi: Amid reports of black marketing and illegal sale of tickets of highly-awaited concerts in India by Punjabi singer Diljeet Dosanjh and British rock band, the Enforcement Directorate (ED) has unearthed a money laundering aspect as it conducted searches across states.
On Friday, searches were conducted at 13 locations across five states—Delhi, Maharashtra (Mumbai), Rajasthan (Jaipur), Karnataka (Bengaluru), and Punjab (Chandigarh)—following the federal investigation agency’s filing of a criminal case under various sections of the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA).
Diljit Dosanjh’s ‘Dil-Luminati’ concert will be held on Friday and Saturday (October 26-27) at the Jawaharlal Nehru (JLN) Stadium in Delhi, while Coldplay’s ‘Music of the Spheres World Tour’ is scheduled for January 2025 in Navi Mumbai.
ED investigation after several duped in Dil-Luminati, Coldplay ticket fraud racket
In a statement, the ED announced it had launched an investigation following numerous reports that individuals and fans were being “deceived or cheated” through “fraudulent” ticket sales after entry passes sold out rapidly.
The agency noted multiple police FIRs filed nationwide, including one by online ticket booking platform BookMyShow, against several suspects “believed to be exploiting concert-goers.”
According to the FIR, these individuals allegedly sold counterfeit tickets and drastically inflated prices, capitalising on the high demand for these sought-after concerts, the ED stated. It said these concerts were an “electrifying” and “highly anticipated” announcement for music enthusiasts across India.
What ED investigation reveals about Diljit Dosanjh, Colplay concert ticket fraud
The central agency said events generated great excitement and official ticketing partners such as BookMyShow and Zomato Live reported that tickets were sold out in just minutes on their platforms, which “ultimately led to black-marketing of tickets at exorbitant prices.” Many fans have found they were duped by being sold fake tickets or charged inflated prices for authentic tickets.
“Searches and investigation conducted by ED has revealed information regarding multiple individuals known for providing such tickets, including fake tickets through social media using Instagram, WhatsApp and Telegram,” it said.
The ED said several “incriminating” materials in the form of mobile phones, laptops, SIM cards, etc. used in the ticket sales “scam” were seized during the raids.
The searches were aimed at investigating the illegal sales of tickets, financial networks supporting these scams, and tracing the proceeds of crime generated from such illegal activities, it said.
In a related development, the Delhi High Court on Thursday sought the response of the Centre on a plea seeking a regulatory framework to regulate the re-sale of these concert tickets through authorised platforms.
A bench of Chief Justice Manmohan and Justice Tushar Rao Gedela issued notice to Union ministries of Information and Broadcasting and Electronics, and Information Technology, private entities Stubhub Inc, Viagogo Entertainment Inc and Bigtree Entertainment Pvt Ltd.
The court said the replies would have to be filed within four weeks and posted the hearing for February 18, 2025. The HC is hearing pleas on alleged irregularities in ticket sales for both these concerts.
