Gambling racket in Southeast Delhi busted

New Delhi: A compliant of traffic snarls at a block in Pamposh Enclave area of Southeast Delhi lead the police to a gambling racket operating in the locality on Sunday.

The gambling den attracted scores of college students and youngsters who parked their cars and bikes outside the building, which led to the snarls.

The house owner, a 55-year-old woman, and 24 others were arrested on Sunday afternoon. Gambling chips, liquor, bingo game, poker table, cash counting machines and Rs 7.58 lakh in cash were seized from them. Confirming the arrests, DCP (Southeast) Romil Baaniya said that the gambling den was running for a little over a month.

The owner, Anupama Jain, told the cops that she was a former model and now works as an event manager. She was staying at the house for the past 10 years. She said that she had given the house on rent to someone else, but was later found involved in the racket. The police is also probing the role of her family members. “We have booked them under Excise Act and Gambling Act,” said Mr Baaniya.

The entry to the den was restricted to only people known to Ms Jain. The dates and time of the game were conveyed through either word of mouth or a closed WhatsApp group. The raid was conducted by a team from Greater Kailash police station, led by SHO Daleep Singh on a tip-off. The arrested people include a dozen organisers, DU students and youngsters looking to earn easy money. Some of them are residents of Janakpuri, Ghanta Ghar, Munirka and Pitampura.

It was found that lakhs, sometimes crores, were spent at the tables where people played poker or blackjack through the night. To cater to high-profile clientele, the organisers had employed bartenders and attendants. The police said that even the neighbours were unaware of the illegal business until the house was raided.