Gambling party busted at Delhi farmhouse, equipment seized

The facility was created by a group of five businessmen friends from Faridabad. They had employed 20 young women to serve alcohol “to lure other players”

Forty-seven people were arrested from an illegal casino set up at a farmhouse in Dera village near Chhatarpur in south Delhi on Tuesday, the Delhi Police said on Friday.

The suspects in police custody. (HT Photo)

Entry to the facility, created by a group of five businessmen friends from Faridabad, could be obtained by using a password: “Guruji”, police said, adding that the organisers had employed 20 young women to serve alcohol “to attract and lure other players”.

The five organisers, who were also previously booked under the Delhi Gambling Act, were among those arrested, police said. Special commissioner of police (crime branch) Ravindra Yadav said that the men also brought alcohol to serve their guests.

He identified the alleged culprits as Amit Kumar, Satender Sehgal, Sahil Gujral, Tejinder Singh and Mithun Taneja, all aged between 29 and 43 years. The men worked various businesses, from confectionary shops to dealing in scrap material, said the officer.

“We have registered a case under the Delhi Gambling Act and Delhi Excise Act. To attract and lure the players, they engaged young women to serve liquor and tokens to the players,” said Yadav. No legal charges were pressed against the 20 women, who were all aged between 18 and 25.

“The accused had taken the farmhouse on rent by paying ₹1.2 lakh per day. They reached out to their known customers, shared the location of the farmhouse over WhatsApp and installed a gate that allowed access only those who entered a passcode — ‘Guruji’,” said Amit Goel, DCP (crime branch).

Tuesday was the first day of their operation, police said, adding that most of the people at the location were known to the five men.

Police said inspector Pawan Kumar of the crime branch received a tip-off on Tuesday about the casino. The information was verified before a raid was conducted, the police said.

When the police raided the premises, they found four casino tables that could seat eight players each.

“A total of around ₹56,000 were found on the four tables. We searched the premises further and seized an additional ₹7.5 lakh. We also recovered 87 bottles of beer and seven bottles of whisky, all of which were meant for sale only in Haryana,” Yadav said.

Police also seized speakers with amplifiers and a cash counting machine from the premises.

He added that while Kumar was booked in a gambling case registered at Vasant Kunj (North) police station in 2021, the other four men were booked in a similar case at Jagatpuri police station in 2022.

Earlier in September, 40 people were arrested for running an illegal casino from a farmhouse in Sector 79, Gururgam. According to the police, the suspects had been gambling for over a decade and made over ₹20 lakh per month.

A total of ₹2.1 lakh, casino tables, and tokens were seized from the spot, police officers said.