The Enforcement Directorate (ED) has summoned YouTuber Siddharth Yadav alias Elvish Yadav for questioning on July 23 in a money laundering case. The case is related to the use of snake venom as an intoxicant in rave parties. The central agency had registered a case in May. After this, the police in Noida had filed charges under the Prevention of Money Laundering (PMLA) after taking cognizance of the FIR and charge sheet filed against Elvish and his associates.
According to the agency, Elvish Yadav was asked to appear before the ED at the Lucknow office this week, but Elvish sought a postponement of the summons due to his scheduled foreign trip and other reasons. Now he has been asked to appear before the ED investigating officer on July 23.
Haryana singer Rahul Yadav alias Rahul Fazilpuria, who is reportedly linked to Elvish Yadav, was questioned by the ED this week. He may be questioned again in this case. The use of illegal money for rave parties is under the purview of ED’s investigation.
Elvish Yadav was arrested by the Noida Police on March 17 in connection with the investigation into the use of snake venom in parties. 26-year-old YouTuber Elvish Yadav is the winner of the reality show Bigg Boss OTT 2. Elvish was booked by the Noida Police under various sections of the Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances (NDPS) Act, Wildlife Protection Act and IPC.
Elvish Yadav was among the six people named in an FIR lodged at Noida’s Sector 49 police station on November 3 last year based on a complaint by NGO People for Animals. There were five other accused, all snake charmers. They were arrested in November and later granted bail by a local court.
The snake charmers were arrested from a banquet hall in Noida on November 3 last year. Nine snakes, including five cobras, were found in their possession, while 20 ml of snake venom was also seized. However, the police had said that Elvish Yadav was not in the banquet hall and Elvish’s role is being investigated. In April, the Noida Police filed a charge sheet of more than 1200 pages. The police had said that these charges include smuggling of snakes, use of narcotics and organizing rave parties.
