Elvish Yadav, the popular YouTuber known online as Elvish Yadav, faced a second round of questioning by the Enforcement Directorate (ED) on August 5th. The investigation focuses on allegations of money laundering related to the alleged use of snake venom as a recreational drug at parties hosted by Yadav. The ED is scrutinizing financial transactions linked to these events.
After eight hours of questioning, Yadav was surrounded by a throng of media personnel. The 26-year-old, known for his lighthearted online persona, visibly lost his cool in the face of the intense media scrutiny. He was heard shouting, “Chill guys chill, relax. Side hato bhai. Khana khao apne ghar jakar. Bhooke mar rahe hoge [Move aside, go home. You all must be starving].” When pressed about his stance on the questioning, Yadav responded, “Chalo nahi rakhna mujhe (I don’t want to keep my stand.)”
Further fueling the controversy, Yadav shared a video showing reporters outside the ED office discussing their strategies. The footage captured reporters saying, “Ek aadmi neeche se inko tight se pakad lena inko aage jaane na dena.” [“Someone should grab them from below and not let them go forward.”] He captioned the video, “For those jo media ko democracy ka fourth pillar maanta hai. [For those who consider media as the fourth pillar of democracy].”
This incident follows Yadav’s arrest by Noida Police on March 17th. The YouTuber, who recently won the reality show Bigg Boss OTT 2, was detained in connection with the snake venom allegations. He was one of six individuals named in an FIR filed at Noida’s Sector 49 Police Station last November, based on a complaint by People for Animals (PFA), an animal rights NGO. The other five accused, all snake charmers, have since been granted bail.
