Just weeks ago, Khajur—a tiny village in Uttar Pradesh’s Unnao district—was alive with whispers of unimaginable prosperity.
The buzz centred on one of its sons, 26-year-old YouTuber and social media influencer Anurag Dwivedi, who was said to have hosted an extravagant destination wedding in Dubai, flying dozens of relatives and close associates to the UAE.
For a village of barely 20 houses, where most men survive on odd jobs abroad, the scale of the celebration seemed surreal.
Then came the knock on the door.
Last week, teams from the Enforcement Directorate arrived in Khajur, turning curiosity into shock.
Anurag’s village house was among 10 premises across Lucknow, Unnao and Delhi searched by the ED’s Kolkata Zonal Office in connection with an alleged illegal online betting and gambling racket.
Supercars, cash and frozen assets
What followed read like a catalogue of sudden wealth.
The ED said it seized four luxury vehicles—including a Lamborghini Urus valued at over ₹4 crore, a Mercedes, a Ford Endeavour and a Thar—along with incriminating documents, digital devices and nearly ₹20 lakh in cash.
The agency also froze movable assets worth around ₹3 crore, including bank balances, fixed deposits and insurance policies, under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act, 2002.
Documents allegedly revealed investments in real estate in Dubai, routed through hawala channels.
Anurag, the ED said, is currently in Dubai and has not responded to multiple summonses.
A rise that raised eyebrows
In Khajur, many residents say they were not entirely surprised. “When the ED team came, it felt like they had more personnel than our entire village,” said Deepak Tiwari, a resident.
He recalled hearing that nearly 30 family members and associates had travelled to Dubai for the wedding. “People kept talking about how much money must have been spent,” he added.
Others say Anurag had moved out of the village around 2019–20 but remained in touch.
“We knew he was doing something related to cricket on social media, but no one really understood how he made so much money,” said Anil Kumar, another villager. “He was often seen driving luxury cars when he visited.”
Despite branding himself as a “fantasy cricket expert, villagers claim they never saw him play cricket or engage with children who played the sport locally—fueling suspicion that his earnings were detached from any visible professional activity.
Influencer culture and imitation
Anurag’s digital footprint is massive: 2.4 million followers on Instagram and over 7 million subscribers on YouTube.
His channel description narrates a rags-to-riches tale—starting with just ₹300 and becoming “India’s biggest fantasy cricket player.”
His recent videos analysed and predicted outcomes of the India–South Africa T20 series.
But villagers allege the lifestyle he projected had darker consequences. “Several boys dropped out of school, inspired by his cars and lifestyle,” claimed Tiwari.
“Anurag himself studied only up to Class IX. Those boys tried to copy him, failed, and are now doing factory jobs.”
How the law closed in
According to the ED, the investigation began with an FIR by the West Bengal Police against individuals accused of running illegal online betting operations.
The probe led to Sonu Kumar Thakur and Vishal Bhardwaj, allegedly operating betting panels from Siliguri using mule accounts, Telegram channels and digital platforms.
The ED claims Anurag played an “active and significant role” in promoting illegal betting apps—creating and circulating promotional videos, influencing users to place bets, and receiving proceeds of crime through hawala routes and mule accounts.
Large sums, the agency alleges, flowed into the accounts of his companies and family members without legitimate commercial justification.
Investigators further claim that these proceeds were used to acquire properties abroad, particularly in Dubai, after which Anurag allegedly left India.
The ED has arrested three persons so far and filed a prosecution complaint before the Special PMLA Court in Kolkata on August 1. Further investigation is ongoing.
The larger story
Anurag Dwivedi’s story reflects the sharp edge of India’s influencer economy—where social media stardom, unregulated online betting, and aspirational wealth can blur into illegality.
From a village of 20 houses to luxury cars and overseas properties, his rise was as dramatic as it was opaque.
Now, with the law tightening its grip, that rise is under intense scrutiny. Whether the influencer who once claimed to have turned ₹300 into an empire can defend that narrative in court remains to be seen.
For Khajur village, the spectacle has already faded—replaced by silence, suspicion, and a cautionary tale about fast money and faster fame.
#AnuragDwivedi #EDRaid #IllegalBetting #YouTuberLife #InfluencerEconomy #MoneyLaundering #Dubai #UPNews #FantasyCricket #LawTakesCourse
