Illegal IPL ticket sales: 2 held with over 100 tickets for SRH Vs RCB match

Hyderabad: In a joint operation conducted by the Commissioner’s Task Force, North Zone team, and Gopalapuram police, two individuals were apprehended for their involvement in the black marketing of IPL match tickets. The accused possessed over 100 tickets for the SRH Vs RCB match which happened at Rajiv Gandhi International Stadium in Hyderabad on April 25, which they were selling at inflated prices in the market.

The apprehended individuals were identified as Chittoor Ramana, a software employee residing in Bengaluru and Nyalakanti Samuel Susheel working for digital marketing and residing in Hyderabad.

Duo used common WhatsApp groups to gain contacts

According to S Rashmi Perumal, IPS, DCP, Task Force, Hyderabad, “Chittoor Ramana and Nyalakanti Samuel Susheel hatched a plan to procure IPL tickets illegally and sell them in the black market for high profits.”

Ramana and Susheel, both cricket enthusiasts, connected through a WhatsApp group where discussions primarily centred around cricket matches. Ramana, who had previously been caught by Chennai police for similar activities during the ODI World Cup matches, initiated the plan to procure tickets through various means and pass them on to Susheel.

“Ramana devised a plan to obtain tickets through common WhatsApp groups and pass them on to Susheel via different email IDs. Susheel would then redeem the QR codes at redemption centres in Hyderabad,” explained Perumal.

Used multiple IDs to bypass ticket restrictions

The modus operandi involved acquiring tickets through multiple email addresses and using other people’s IDs and names to deceive authorities and bypass the restriction of obtaining only four tickets per individual imposed by IPL authorities.

“The illegal sale of IPL tickets not only causes financial losses to the ticket-selling authorities but also creates artificial scarcity, depriving genuine cricket enthusiasts of the opportunity to attend matches,” said Perumal.

Perumal also highlighted the involvement of several youths in black marketing activities related to IPL tickets, emphasising that such actions are illegal and will be met with penalties and punishment.

The public has been urged not to purchase tickets sold illegally and to report any suspicious activities to the authorities to discourage such unlawful practices.