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Raids carried out over ‘illegal’ ticket touting

Search operations were conducted in five Indian states in connection with the resale of tickets for Coldplay and Diljit Dosanjh concerts

By James Hanley on 28 Oct 2024

Diljit Dosanjh in concert


India’s Directorate of Enforcement (ED) says it seized “incriminating” material in a series of raids across five states in connection with the “illegal” touting of Coldplay and Diljit Dosanjh tickets.

Police are investigating after tickets sold for the artists’ upcoming concerts in the country via official ticketing partners BookMyShow (BMS) and Zomato Live sold out in minutes only to quickly appear on resale platforms at exorbitant prices. A number of fans also discovered the tickets they bought on the black market were counterfeit.

ED, New Delhi subsequently launched investigations in Delhi, Mumbai, Jaipur, Chandigarh and Bangalore on Friday (25 October) under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA) 2002.

“Following the rapid sellout, numerous reports have emerged of individuals being deceived/cheated through fraudulent ticket sales,” says a spokesperson for the government agency. “Many fans have discovered that they were sold fake tickets or charged exorbitant prices for legitimate ones.”

It carried out search operations at more than 13 locations and seized “several incriminating materials such as mobile phones, laptops and sim cards allegedly used in the scam.

“This action was aimed to investigate the illegal sales of tickets and the financial networks supporting these scams and to trace the proceeds of crime generated”

“This action was aimed to investigate the illegal sales of tickets and the financial networks supporting these scams and to trace the proceeds of crime generated from such illegal activities,” adds the spokesperson. “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.”

Further investigations are ongoing.

Dosanjh, who recently became the highest-selling South Asian artist at The O2 in London, is bringing his Dilluminati Tour to several Indian cities in November and December, while Coldplay’s Music of the Spheres Tour touches down at Mumbai’s DY Patil Sports Stadium on 18, 19 & 21 January next year.

BMS has threatened to void tickets sold on the black market for the Coldplay shows and lodged a formal First Information Report (FIR) with Mumbai police urging authorities to investigate “the unauthorised resale of tickets by individuals and platforms”.

Public interest litigations (PIL) have also been filed across India calling for strict guidelines on the secondary sector in the wake of the controversies, with a wider hearing slated for 18 February 2025. A PIL lodged  by lawyer Amit Vyas at Bombay High Court alleges “several irregularities and illegalities” during the sale of tickets and accuses resellers of violating consumer protection rules.

 


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