Celebrity Status in Jeopardy: What Does ED Want from Tamannaah Bhatia?

Bollywood actress Tamannaah Bhatia has been directed to appear before the Enforcement Directorate (ED) office again on November 5. The actress was interrogated for eight hours at the ED office, with officials questioning her from Thursday afternoon to night.

Tamannaah is being interrogated as part of an investigation into a money laundering case related to the ‘HPZ Token’ mobile application. This app allegedly deceived numerous investors under the guise of Bitcoin and other cryptocurrency mining. She was questioned by three top officials from four branches of the ED.

Bhatia, 34, provided her statement in compliance with the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA) at their zonal office in Guwahati. Reports indicate that she is said to have received payments for a ‘celebrity appearance’ at an event for the app company, but there are no ‘incriminating’ allegations against her. Bhatia had been summoned previously but postponed her appearance due to work commitments, ultimately attending on Thursday.

The charge sheet filed by the ED in March names 299 entities as accused, including 76 linked to Chinese interests, with 10 directors of Chinese origin and two entities managed by other foreign nationals. This money laundering investigation stems from a report by the cybercrime unit of Kohima Police in Nagaland, which filed charges against several individuals under various sections of the Indian Penal Code (IPC) and the Information Technology Act. The accused reportedly promised high returns to ‘gullible’ investors through Bitcoin and cryptocurrency mining.

It may be mentioned that the ED has already seized assets worth Rs 455 crore from this app, which has been running since 2016-17.

Earlier, Guwahati ED Assistant Director Ram Dixit sent summon to Tamannaah, and on the basis of that summons, the actress arrived in Guwahati on Thursday. Tamannaah Bhatia's statement has been recorded by the director.

This is the second instance of Tamannaah Bhatia facing questioning from the Enforcement Directorate (ED). Previously, she was scrutinized for her alleged connections to the Mahadev betting app. In April, the Maharashtra Cyber Cell summoned her for reportedly promoting Indian Premier League (IPL) matches on the FairPlay app, which operates as a subsidiary of Mahadev.