Police bust secret casino in South Delhi farmhouse, 30 held

NEW DELHI: It was a farmhouse spread over 13 acres in the heart of south Delhi, where Bollywood movies and TV soaps were shot. But when the farmhouse was not used as a set, it turned into a secret casino where the rich and mighty of Delhi, Noida and Gurgaon played for high stakes.A few hours after sunset, scores of people quietly drove into the farmhouse on Dera Mandi road in south Delhi's Fatehpur Beri. Lakhs, sometimes crores, were lost and won on tables where people played roulette, blackjack and poker.However, the vigilance branch of south Delhi, acting on a tip-off, swooped down on the casino on Tuesday evening and arrested 30 people, including 12 businessmen guests. o cater to its high-proT file clientele, the organisers had employed female bar-tenders from Kathmandu. The liquor served was exclusive, just high-end whiskies and single-malts.Entry to the den was extremely restricted. As it is, Fatehpur Beri, home to big farmhouses that resemble fortified islands, has such a stringent security that the cops informally call the area "Vatican City". Word of mouth and a closed Whatsapp group called `friends' was used to convey the dates and time to a chosen few.This was not the first time cops have stumbled upon an illegal casino -they are legal only in Goa, Daman and Sikkim -in south Delhi. A few months ago, cops had busted similar casinos in Sainik Farms and Vasant Kunj areas.Among the arrested are five women bartenders, a dozen businessmen from Delhi, Gurgaon and Noida, the owner of the property, dealers and organisers. Tokens worth crores, illegal liquor and 13 sedans have been seized. These include six bottles of Chivas Regal, 24 bottles of Black Label and 12 bottles of Teachers whisky. Police say that the farmhouse was used for shooting teleserials and the casino was being run under the garb of the TV set. The owner told cops that he had given the farmhouse on rent but cops said he was found involved in the racket as well. The farmhouse has been seized as well.The vigilance branch of south district had received a tip-off that an illegal casino was being secretly run from a farmhouse on Dera Mandi Road. On August 22, a police team comprising inspector Manoj Singh and Ram Singh was formed and a trap was laid. "Around 11pm, the cops entered the farmhouse and found many people gambling on four big tables. The gamblers were being facilitated by the organisers and attendants. A raid was subsequently conducted and the people detained," said Ishwar Singh, DCP (south).The teams recovered around 10,000 chips worth several crores. The chips were in denomination of Rs 1000, 3000, 5000 and 10,000.Around 470 playing cards and 45 packets of cards were found.Cops said that the property belonged to one Suresh Yadav. He was later detained and arrested. Two FIRs under the Delhi Public Gambling Act and Excise Act were registered.