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31st December Madhavan submits report on Nikhil Chopra Kochi,
December 31:
BCCI anti-corruption commissioner K Madhavan on Saturday said he had
submitted a report on former cricketer Nikhil Chopra to the board,
after examining him on charges of match fixing. “It
is for the BCCI to make it public or not,'' he said and meanwhile
refused to disclose the contents of the report submitted on December
27. Madhavan, a
former CBI joint-director, said he would also examine ex-skippers
Kapil Dev and Ajit Wadekar on sixth January and seven respectively,
in the wake of charges against them. The
one report on Mohammed Azharuddin and Ajay Jadeja was submitted on
November 25, two days before he filed a supplementary report on his
observations about the BCCI. Answering
a question, Madhavan said the post of the anti-corruption
commissioner in the BCCI would be retained, as charges of match
fixing, if any, against cricketers, would have to be looked into in
future as well. Madhavan
said there had been sufficient evidence against some cricketers.
"These may require departmental action, but they cannot be
proved in a court of law.'' He
replied in the negative when asked whether there had been pressure
from any quarter to exonerate any tainted player. He had, already
exonerated some of the players and individuals who were found guilty
in the CBI probe, for want of sufficient evidence against them, he
pointed out. Madhavan
was here in connection with the release of a book on his years of
service with the CBI, published by the Mathrubhumi printing and
publishing company. "Based
on the statements of Kapil and Wadekar, I would decide whether or
not to issue summons to other cricketers also," he said.
30th December Nagercoil,
December 29: Union
minister of state for youth affairs and sports P Radhakrishan on
Friday said the government was consulting legal experts on the
question of withdrawing the Arjuna awards conferred upon cricketers
banned by the BCCI in connection with the match-fixing scandal. There
are more Skeletons to Discover: CBI Chief
New
Delhi, December 29: CBI director R K Raghavan believes there is a lot
more to the cricket betting and match-fixing scandal than his agency has
found and with further probe it hopes to "strike gold
sometime." "Probably
there are more characters involved in this drama," he said
referring to the alleged underworld connections and added that "two
names which came to notice are of Abu Saleem and Anees Ibrahim." According
to him, Mohammed Azharuddin, who was given a life ban by the cricket
board, had confirmed that he had been asked to "do" some
matches which the former India captain said he refused. Asked
about the cricket board's criticism of the CBI report, Raghavan said the
board was entitled to its views. "BCCI has its views but we have a
right to differ. It has a right to differ too. I will be the last person
to enter into a slanging match". "They
(BCCI officials) are men of eminence," he said and added that the
situation was too grave for them to ignore. "We
have suggested they impose a rigid code of conduct; one which can be
implemented. They should install a monitoring mechanism to counter this
problem. It
will be naive on our part to think it will not happen again," the
CBI boss said. Mumbai,
December 26:
Former Indian skipper Mohammed Azharuddin is likely to file a case
against the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) in a
Hyderabad court and has decided to hire the services of Mr. Jagdish,
a local lawyer. However,
the overall charge of the legal battle will be taken care by Delhi
based H.R.Bhardwaj of Messrs Bhardwaj & Associates. The local
legal expert will seek "guidance" from Mr. Bhardwaj as and
when required. Azhar
has been advised to file a case against the BCCI, which has banned
him for life for official cricket for his alleged involvement in the
betting and match-fixing scandal. Speaking
to this correspondent over telephone from his New Delhi before going
on a Christmas vacation, Mr. Bhardwaj said, " We have advised
him not to fight litigation in Delhi Court as it would be out of
economy besides being inconvenient for him to come to Delhi
often." Mr.
Bhardwaj, a former law minister (during P V Narasimha Rao and Rajiv
Gandhi governments) and currently a Rajya Sabha member, is a fan and
great admirer of Azharuddin's game. CBI
to probe underworld mafia links of cricketers New
Delhi, December 26:
CBI is not yet finished with the murky dealings in cricket and has
now begun a full-fledged investigation into the "unholy"
nexus between the underworld mafia and some of India's leading
players and administrators. Highly
placed agency sources said a thorough probe to unravel a nexus
between cricketers and underworld persons had been initiated and CBI
had sought help from various other agencies in this connection. The
sources said CBI director R K Raghavan had held a series of meetings
with the officials of other security and intelligence agencies for
data on some of the underworld people. The probe into this nexus and
its ramifications on the national security is being conducted both
within India and abroad. The
sources said the agency, after completing the probe into the role of
cricketers and bookies, would be now going deeper into the possible
nexus of the underworld with cricket players and administrators. They
said even though the nexus had been unearthed during the agency's
probe in the betting and match-fixing scandal, the dimensions were
yet to be fully established. Without
disclosing any names, the sources said a "few Indian
players" had links with the underworld that had been fairly
established during earlier investigation. New
Delhi, December 27: Cricketer
Mohammed Azharuddin has decided to challenge in the court the life
ban slapped on him by the cricket board. “He will move the court.
But it is yet to be decided whether he will go to the Andhra Pradesh
high court or the district court,'' his counsel and former Union law
minister H R Bhardwaj said here on Wednesday night. He
said the former India captain's legal advisors were working out the
details. There
were also indications here that another former India captain Ajay
Jadeja too was working towards moving the court against the
five-year ban imposed on him by the cricket board. Meanwhile,
Manoj Prabhakar said that he would first appeal to the board against
the five-year ban imposed on him. If I fail to get justice there, I
will knock at the court's door,'' he said. People
taking advantage of my silence: Azhar Hyderabad,
December 26: Former
Indian skipper Mohammed Azharuddin on Monday said people were taking
advantage of his silence. "People were taking advantage of my
silence," Azharuddin said over phone in his in his first
comments after being named in CBI report on match-fixing and added
that he was pained over speculative reports involving his name in
media. CBI
to probe underworld mafia links of cricketers New
Delhi, December 26:
CBI is not yet finished with the murky dealings in cricket and has
now begun a full-fledged investigation into the "unholy"
nexus between the underworld mafia and some of India's leading
players and administrators. Highly
placed agency sources said a thorough probe to unravel a nexus
between cricketers and underworld persons had been initiated and CBI
had sought help from various other agencies in this connection. The
sources said CBI director R K Raghavan had held a series of meetings
with the officials of other security and intelligence agencies for
data on some of the underworld people. The probe into this nexus and
its ramifications on the national security is being conducted both
within India and abroad. The
sources said the agency, after completing the probe into the role of
cricketers and bookies, would be now going deeper into the possible
nexus of the underworld with cricket players and administrators. They
said even though the nexus had been unearthed during the agency's
probe in the betting and match-fixing scandal, the dimensions were
yet to be fully established. Without
disclosing any names, the sources said a "few Indian
players" had links with the underworld that had been fairly
established during earlier investigation. Azharuddin
to sue BCCI Speaking
from his Delhi residence, former union minister H R Bharadwaj, who
is Azhar’s legal advisor, said, “We have advised Azhar not to
fight the case in Delhi as it would be inconvenient for him to come
to Delhi often.” Bhardwaj added he asked Azhar to seek support
from media as well. “Only
that forum can protect him from an adverse public opinion. We have
told him to come out in the open and express his grievances to the
media,” he said. Bhardwaj feels Azhar’s case on the Arjuna Award
issue is also strong. “How can the government take away
achievements and awards won in the past?” he asked. South Africa puts off match-fixing hearingCape
Town, December 24: The
date of the resumption of the hearing of the King Commission
inquiring into allegations of match fixing in South African cricket
has once again been put off. The
Commission had scheduled to resume its hearing on January 25, 2001.
This date is now likely to be on or after February 19, 2001. This
development follows the success of the application by Hansie Cronje
to the Cape High Court yesterday seeking a postponement of
resumption of the Commission's hearing. The
petition charging the Commission of reneging on an agreement that it
would consult with his lawyers before setting a date for the
resumption of the hearing. The petition said January 25, 2001 was
not suitable since his lawyers had other legal commitments on that
day, and would not be free till February 19, 2001. Opposing
the petition, the Commission said the resumption of its hearing on
the date scheduled would not prejudice Cronje and indeed his
presence was not necessary since the witnesses scheduled to be
called on that day were Mr. Ali Bacher, outgoing Managing Director
of the UCBSA, and Mr. Ghulam Rajah, manger of the South African
cricket team. But
Cronje's lawyers argued that their presence was necessary since
evidence rendered by Mr. Bacher and Mr. Rajah could materially
affect Cronje, in particular his expectation to secure indemnity
from prosecution if he were to make full disclosure of his
involvement in match-fixing. In
a related development, lawyers for Hansie Cronje have lodged a
petition before the Pretoria High Court challenging the `life ban'
imposed by the UCBSA on Cronje. The petition is to be opposed by the
Board, according to a report by the South African Press
Agency. Azharuddin
and Jadeja may lose their Arjuna awards New Delhi, December 23: The sports ministry is contemplating taking back the Arjuna awards conferred on Mohammed Azharuddin, Ajay Jadeja and Manoj Prabhakar, following their indictment in the cricket match-fixing scandal and has given each of them a fortnight to reply to its notices. Sports Minister Uma Bharti announced this in the Rajya Sabha on Friday, in reply to a series of queries on the subject. The action follows the CBI probe into match fixing and the decision by the Board of Control for Cricket in India to impose a ban on these three and a fourth player, Ajay Sharma. The
action follows the CBI probe into match fixing and the decision by
the Board of Control for Cricket in India to impose a ban on these
three and a fourth player, Ajay Sharma. The
minister said the law ministry had been asked about the practical
and legal aspects of one or two players throwing matches as
confessed by Azharuddin. The ministry has said the prosecution of
Azharuddin and Jadeja is possible under the Prevention of Corruption
Act, since they are also legally public servants. As for prosecution
under gambling laws, the Union government can't do much as
enforcement of that is with state governments. Asked
about the possibility of the government reducing the number of
one-day matches to bring back glory to the game, Bharti said the
BCCI was an autonomous body and it was free to take its own
decision. Cronje forces delay in resumption of King Commission Cape
Town, December 23: Special
thanks to a court ruling on Friday through which disgraced South
African captain Hansie Cronje managed to postpone the resumption of
the King Commission of Inquiry into match-fixing and corruption in
the Cape High Court, presiding judge Thembali
Jali ruled that the Commission had breached its undertaking to
consult with Cronje's legal team before deciding on a date for the
second session of hearings. The first session ended in June. Cronje's
lawyers argued his legal team would not be available on January 25,
the date announced for the resumption by judge Edwin King. They also
argued the Commission had failed in its undertaking to consult them
on the date for the resumption and on which witnesses would be
called and in which order. The
lawyers said the Commission had been withholding vital information
regarding the first witnesses to be called and accused Commission
officials of preventing them from cross-questioning the witnesses
effectively. In
response the Commission argued Cronje was not a criminal but merely
a witness and therefore his attendance should not dictate the date
for the resumption of hearings. Judge
Jali, however, ruled differently. "Mr. Cronje has a major
interest in proceedings and is not merely a witness. He is the main
player," he said in his judgment. No date
has been agreed upon for the resumption. South Africans condemn the King’s Commission proposal Durban,
December 19:
South African cricket enthusiasts and commentators have strongly
condemned the King Commission's proposals that the telephone numbers
and e-mails of players and officials be monitored to fight
match-fixing practices. Justice
Edwin King, probing corruption in South African cricket, in his
second report submitted to President Thabo Mbeki, said the United
Cricket Board (UCB) should monitor all player’s phone calls and
e-mail messages because "up to now access to players has been
too free and easy." He
said in the 19-page report that "only cellular telephones
issued to players by the UCB should be allowed and details of calls
made and received should be available so as to allow monitoring by
the UCB." He
added, "Possession of an unauthorized mobile telephone should
be a punishable offence." A
former official of the UCB and now a commentator M T S Patel said
the proposals of Justice King would only isolate the players further
from the cricket fans. "While
we need measures to combat match-fixing, we cannot isolate the
players from the public," Patel said. "Can
you imagine what will happen if we isolate Jonty Rhodes from the
public? "We
need cricket to be an open game and not some kind of a secret
report," he said. Peter
Davis, editor of Sunday Tribune, said in an editorial
yesterday that the mindset behind the proposals should be tested. "These
are cricketers, for goodness sake, not international assassins or
spies or mafia money launderers," he said. "That
certain cricketers took money, apparently to fix matches, is sad for
the credibility of the game and the fact that millions who watch via
television are conned by their heroes - but it is only a game.'' "That
a high court judge should suggest these sportsmen should lose their
fundamental human rights because they may, in the future, again fall
to the temptation of easy money shows a disregard for the rights of
the individual - a trait we hope other judges will eschew." Davis
said there must be certain ways to discipline disreputable
sportspersons without resorting to seemingly "James Bond-style
tactics". "The
trouble is sport has become a contest to win at any cost. Most of us
have forgotten what it is really about - to play the game to the
best of one's ability, to foster and enjoy its spirit and to ensure
fair play at all times," he said. ICC offices searched by corruption investigators London,
Dec 19: The
International Cricket Council (ICC) disclosed that documents from
its offices were handed over to the Anti-Corruption Unit (ACU), set
up to investigate claims of cricket match-fixing. In a
statement, the ICC confirmed that the Anti-Corruption Unit, led by
former London Metropolitan Police chief Sir Paul Condon, obtained
documents from ICC offices in London and Monaco. The ACU was acting
in advance of a request from the Central Bureau of Investigation
(CBI) in India, which is compiling a report into allegations of
malpractice in the awarding of TV rights in relation to the 1998 ICC
Knockout Tournament. Malcolm
Gray, the ICC president, personally authorized access to the files,
the statement said. "The
ICC is on record as offering the ACU free access to any of its
records or documentation. In the spirit of that offer, we wanted to
act responsibly and promptly to the ACU’s request," said
Gray. All
documentation and records removed from the ICC offices at Lord's are
being stored at the London offices of solicitors Simmons and
Simmons, who act for the ICC. Simmons
and Simmons supported the ACU investigators in Monaco and have
arranged for an independent legal firm to store documents in its
Monaco office. Gray
replaced India's Jamoghan Dalmiya as ICC president. The Indian
businessman's commercial dealings at the ICC, notably the awarding
of TV deals have been the subject of much scrutiny. After
Dalmiya quit, Lord MacLaurin, the head of the England and Wales
Cricket Board, said no future ICC chief should play such an active
role in the game's business negotiations. The
request for information was triggered by discussions held by Sir
Paul Condon and a team of international investigators with the CBI
in India last week. At these talks, the CBI confirmed its TV rights
investigation and the likelihood that records from the ICC would be
required. IT authorities to issue notices to cricket players New
Delhi, Dec 17:
IT authorities will be issuing notices to five
cricket players including Kapil Dev and Ajay Jadeja for filing of block
returns. The Assessing officer of Income Tax would be issuing notices to
Manoj Prabhakar, Ajay Sharma, Ajay Jadeja and Nikhil Chopra whose
appraisal reports had already been sent to him. The appraisal report of
Kapil Dev would also be completed this week and sent to him. The
appraisal report of Navjot Singh Sidhu has been sent to Ludhiana
Directorate who would be issuing notice for submission of the block
returns this week. The IT
sources said the appraisal report of former Indian skipper Mohammed
Azharuddin had been also completed by the Hyderabad directorate and
notice was likely to be issued to him soon. Earlier,
on July 20, IT officials had raided premises of cricketers including
Kapil Dev, Jadeja, Ajay Sharma, Nikhil Chopra and Manoj Prabhakar
(all in Delhi), Azharuddin (Hyderabad and Mumbai) and Navjot Sidhu
(Patiala), former International Cricket Council Chief Jagmohan
Dalmiya (Calcutta), Worldtel Chairman Mark Mascarenhas (Bangalore)
and BCCI treasurer Kishore Rungta (Jaipur), besides some bookies. The
sources said this was the last opportunity for the players to clear
themselves and defaulters would attract a fine of 100 to 300 per
cent of the income involved. About the
bookies, the sources said their appraisal reports would be completed
in another 10 days and sent to the Assessing officers for issuance
of notices. The Income
Tax authorities had centralized the cases for players in Delhi and
one Income Tax Commissioner would be assisted by two Assessing
officers for speedy disposal of the cases, IT sources said. Meanwhile,
the CBI sources said it "would not act in haste" in
prosecuting Mohammed Azharuddin and Ajay Sharma, under the
prevention of Corruption Act. The sources added that they would wait
for the final report of the Income Tax authorities before initiating
any action on the two cricketers. Azharuddin
undecided on moving court to challenge ban
Hyderabad,
Dec 17: Former
Indian captain Mohammad Azharuddin, who was slapped with a life ban by
the BCCI, is yet to decide on moving court to challenge its decision. Former
Union law minister H R Bharadwaj, who has been tendering legal advice to
the tainted cricketer in the wake of the match-fixing scandal, said, ''I
have been counselling Azharuddin from the time he was named one of the
main players involved in fixing matches.'' Bharadwaj
claimed that Azhar, who was initially reluctant to appear before BCCI's
anti-corruption commissioner K. Madhavan, relented only after he advised
him to do so. I'll
go to BCCI first and the court next: Jadeja New
Delhi, December 17: Disgraced
cricketer Ajay Jadeja says he intends to appeal in court against his
punishment after making his last-ditch appeal before the Board of
Control for Cricket in India. Bookie
paid $60,000 to Aravinda’s girl Arjuna
Ranatunga and Aravinda de Silva are the two among world’s many
other leading players named by the Central Bureau of Investigation
(CBI) for allegedly accepting bribes from bookmaker Gupta to fix
results of matches. Aravinda was not available for comments.
However, sources close to the Lankan Board said Ranatunga and de
Silva were seeking legal advice against the CBI for having dragged
their names into the match-fixing scandal. The
Board of Control for Cricket in Sri Lanka (BCCSL) has given a
month’s time to its anti-corruption commissioner Desmond Fernando
to find out the truth. Fernando is a lawyer by profession and is
also Lanka’s representative in the ICC’s Code of Conduct
Committee, which has hardly met ever since the scandal broke out.
Fernando is in India for investigation and his desire to meet MK was
understandable. He has even contacted BCCI’s investigator K
Madhavan and requested him to look into the possibility of tracing
out Gupta in order to gather more evidence. However,
Madhavan could not invite M K Gupta for interrogation, as he did not
fall under BCCI’s jurisdiction. The bookie is alleged to have
close contacts with many Indian and international cricketers. Manoj
Prabhakar's guard attacked Sharma
said when he tried to blow his whistle; the miscreants beat him
before fleeing. Sharma has registered a complaint with the police.
The police officials said, "We are looking into the
matter." The attack
comes nearly a month after a group of Shiv Sainiks pelted stones at
a beauty clinic run by Prabhakar's wife in South Delhi protesting
against the cricketer's alleged involvement in match-fixing. Condon
wants to meet Malik, Iqbal
Islamabad,
Dec 16: ICC’s anti-corruption chief Sir Paul Condon has sought a
meeting with former Pakistan skippers Salim Malik and Asif Iqbal in
connection with the match-fixing scandal. However, Pakistan Cricket
Board will scan Condon’s request in their emergency meeting after
taking legal opinion from the board's lawyer. Meanwhile
PCB has informed Condon that they have no jurisdiction over Asif
Iqbal and that he would have to examine Iqbal on his own initiative.
Condon and his team were in India to meet the CBI and Indian cricket
board officials to get information about non-Indian players
mentioned in the CBI report on match-fixing. The names of Malik and
Asif Iqbal figure in the report besides that of Alec Stewart, Martin
Crowe, Dean Jones, Brian Lara, Mark Waugh, and others. Malik,
who is contemplating to settle in Canada, said he would first get
his name cleared before thinking of migrating. Condon was keen to
examine Malik not only on the basis of the CBI and Qayyum reports,
but also since the British tabloid News of the World had
handed over video and audio tape recordings to the unit, in which
Malik claims to be a figurehead in the match-fixing racket. The
interview was recorded this year in April in London when the tabloid
sent its undercover reporters to meet the former captain as
businessmen interested in fixing matches. Judge King not to hear evidence on Cronje until February 19 Cape
Town, Dec 16: Judge Edwin
King, the head of a commission probing South Africa's cricket
match-fixing scandal, agreed not to hear any evidence on Hansie
Cronje until February 19. The judge, who has to resume public
hearings into the scandal on January 25, has handed papers to the
Cape High Court pledging to leave the disgraced captain out of it
until the later date. Cronje,
who has been banned from cricket for life after admitting accepting
thousands of dollars from bookmakers, said in before the court he
could not afford to brief a new legal team. Cronje has also
challenging the ban handed down by the United Cricket Board of South
Africa (UCB) in court. Azhar
says he is sick to CBI Stating this, SBI chairman Janki Ballabh said that the bank was not contemplating any action against him unless "we receive any communication from any competent authority." In reply to a question, he told reporters that it was a routine administrative affair to issue a notice to players, not in the national or regional squad to report for duty and we had done the same. He
said the bank would look into Azharuddin’s request and was in no
hurry to pursue the matter.Asked if any action would be taken
against Azharuddin in the wake of corruption charges against a
public servant, Ballabh said "we have received no such
direction from any competent authority. He continues to be our
employee and unless we receive any communication from any competent
authority our service rules do not authorise us to take any
action." Ballabh said the bank would treat Azharuddin like any
other employee. Cricket
criminals have a lot to fear: Condon Sir Paul Condon, head
of the International Cricket Council's anti-corruption team, claims
he has a wealth of new information about alleged wrong-doings in the
game following meetings with Indian police, politicians and
officials. The former head of
the London police force said every player named in the 162-page
Central Bureau of Investigation report two months ago will be
interviewed in due course. Condon refused to say
if the material corroborated claims by Mukesh Kumar Gupta, the India
bookmaker, that senior players including Alec Stewart and Brian Lara
took money in exchange for information. He would not be drawn
either on whether English cricketers could be forced to take
lie-detector tests as recommended in a new report by the King
Commission which conducted the inquiry into the Hansie Cronje
affair. But Condon did say:
"Cricketers who have been named and are innocent have
absolutely nothing to fear from the investigations. "However,
anyone who has been named and has done some thing that approximates
to criminality has a lot to fear." He added "We are
determined to leave no stone unturned in investigating these
allegations, but equally players should not be condemned without
evidence being available. "There is new
evidence available to support our investigations, and the immediate
task is to make an assessment of its content." ACB
rejects player phone tap plan Adelaide,
Australia, Dec 16: Australian cricket
officials Friday rejected South African suggestions players' phone
calls should be monitored and undercover agents employed in a bid to
stamp out match-fixing. The judge
investigating the Hansie Cronje match-fixing saga in South Africa,
Edwin King, included the measures among a list of options in an
interim report as part of his probe into corruption in cricket. Australian Cricket
Board (ACB) chief executive Malcolm Speed said Australian players
would not take kindly to being approached by an undercover person
making offers to them to become involved in corruption, which was
one of the proposals contained in the report. "I think when
you go through the menu of options there are some that the
Australian Cricket Board is already doing, there are some that the
Australian Cricket Board would consider and there are some that are
really inappropriate in the Australian environment of where we're
placed in relation to this issue," Speed told reporters during
the third Test against the West Indies here. "I think the
suggestion that we should place a mole or someone in the Australian
cricket team to make offers to Australian players to behave
inappropriately or to act in a corrupt manner - I believe that's
inappropriate. "With the
current mindset of the Australian cricket team, any person who came
in and did that would be at serious risk of physical injury if that
were to happen. We would not consider that." Judge King's report
said the United Cricket Board of South Africa should issue cellular
phones to players and monitor all calls and e-mail messages. Possession of an
unauthorised phone should be a punishable offence, the report said. Speed said there
could be legal problems in Australia with phone tapping and room and
baggage searches. But he said a formal
ethics committee, consisting of players and management was a good
idea. "This list of
options has been suggested. We'll work our way through it, we'll
work out those that do appeal to us," he said. "When we reach
that stage, we'll address the legality of them." Australian
Cricketers' Association chief executive Tim May said monitoring
phone calls was an unnecessary invasion of players' rights. "There are
obviously players' rights and privacy rights that must be
observed," May said. "The important
thing here is that we find a balance between the players' rights and
the rights of cricket officials to fight match fixing." Cronje’s lawyers won the legal argument Cape
Town, Dec 15: Disgraced former captain Hansie Cronje’s lawyer have
won a legal argument over the resumption of the King Commission inquiry
into cricket corruption. Cronje's personal attorney, Les Sackstein,
lodged an urgent application with the Cape High Court, demanding a
review of the Commission's intention to resume hearings next January 24.
The application was based on legal protocol, as Sackstein believed he
and his team had not been given sufficient warning of the resumption. Counsel
for the Commission agreed they would not deal with any matters
concerning Cronje until February 19, the date on which the former
captain's legal representatives said they would be ready to attend.
Michael Edmunds, instructing attorney for Cronje, said that until
that date, the Commission had agreed to stick to general inquiries. Criminal
case registered against Azhar and Jadeja
Rajkot, Dec 14: A criminal case has been registered by police against former Indian skipper Mohammad Azaharuddin and batsman Ajay Jadeja for cheating and criminal conspiracy for allegedly fixing the one-day cricket match between India and South Africa, played in the city in 1996. The case was registered, on a complaint lodged by a spectator, under two separate sections of IPC 420 and 120-B. The commissioner of police Sudhir Sinha said that investigations would be conducted after a detailed study of CBI and Madhavan Committee reports on match fixing and if they are found guilty, legal action would be initiated. Sanjay
Vyas, the complainant, an advocate by profession, in his FIR said
that by fixing the Rajkot match played on October 29, 1996 both the
senior players had cheated the spectators, who had come to enjoy a
fair game. Marsh
quit as national selector to take up consulting role with BCCI
Sydney,
Dec 14: Former
Australian opener Geoff Marsh quit Wednesday as a national selector
to take up a consulting role with the Board of Control for Cricket
in India (BCCI). David
Boon, Australia’s fourth highest Test run-scorer with 7,422 runs,
who currently works for the Tasmanian Cricket Association, replaced
him. Marsh had been a front-runner to take over as the first foreign
coach of the Indian cricket team but the job instead went to New
Zealander John Wright. Man
arrested in match-fixing investigation LONDON,
Dec 14: British
police, investigating the alleged attempted bribery of former
cricket international Chris Lewis, arrested a 33-year-old London
man. Police were called in to investigate allegations of match
fixing on August 3 last year when a player contacted the England and
Wales Cricket board (ECB). It emerged that the player was former
England bowler Lewis, who claimed he had been asked to approach
players and offer them money in return for throwing a Test match in
England in 1999 angainst New Zealand at Old Trafford, Manchester.
Co-ordinated efforts to eradicate match-fixing : Condon New
Delhi, Dec 14: International Cricket Council's anti-corruption
Director Sir Paul Condon today said it was the duty of all cricket
playing nations to carry forward the investigations from where the
Central Bureau of Investigations had left it. "We
will take foward the investigations from here and ensure co-ordinated
efforts to remove the menace of betting and match-fixing in
cricket," Sir Paul said. Earlier in the day, Condon met Union
Sports Minister Uma Bharti, who described the meeting as a purely
"courtsey call". Condon
made it clear that after amassing "huge evidence" against
some foreign players, ICC would "further probe" into the
role of these cricketers named by CBI of either having received or
offered money by the bookies. Besides
Condon, the other members including Martin Hawkins and Bob Samanney
(both from ICC), Desmond Fernando from Sri Lanka, Australia's Greg
Melick and Tim Gresson (New Zealand), met the CBI officials headed
by Joint Director of agency's Special Crime Branch R N Sawani and
reviewed the evidence against the foreign players. Commending
the CBI report, ICC anti-corrpution Director said "the CBI
report was a significant step forward in the fight against
corrpution in cricket and I congratulate CBI on its thoroughness and
professionalism." Condon
made it clear that ICC would not leave any "stone
unturned" in investigating these allegations. "But equally
players should not be condemned without evidence being available. As
a result, we have been working to establish whether this evidence
can be uncovered." He said
ICC would be coming out with suggestions on how to stop this menace
and in this connection a two-member ICC team had gone to South
Africa and had interviewed sacked skipper Hansie Cronje. Condon
said, however, in the present world where live matches and internet
was present, it would be difficult to completely stop the menace. The
162-page CBI report on betting and match-fixing names ex-captains
Alec Stewart (England), Brian Lara (West Indies), Hansie Cronje
(South Africa), Arjuna Ranatunga and Arvinda D'Silva (Sri Lanka),
Martin Crowe (New Zealand) and Asif Iqbal and Salim Malik
(Pakistan). Apart from the former skippers, the names of two more
Australian players Mark Waugh and Dean Jones also figured in the CBI
report. Sri
Lankan Cricket Board special investigator Desmond Fernando, who is
on his second trip to India in relation to the case, said the Boards
of all the countries were basing their investigations on CBI's
findings. "Each
of the Boards who have players named in CBI report are taking the
allegations very seriously. The most effective way forward is
through the sharing of information and agreement to a co-ordinated
approach," he said. "My investigations will continue on
this basis." Madhavan
meets Chopra
Chennai,
Dec 13: The Indian off-spinner Nikhil Chopra, who has been kept
out of the matches against Zimbabwe, as the BCCI wanted his name
cleared from the match-fixing controversy, was on Tuesday questioned
by the BCCI's anti-corruption commissioner K. Madhavan. Chopra was
questioned from 10 am to 12.30 pm. Talking to the media after the
questioning Madhavan said that he would submit his report on Chopra
“very soon.” About
the questioning of the former Indian captain and coach Kapil Dev and
the Indian manager Ajit Wadekar, Madhavan said that he hoped to
wind-up the investigation by January 31. Earlier, talking to the
media before meeting Madhavan, Chopra said: "I am not guilty
and I hope I will be cleared.''
It may be recalled that the CBI in its report did not find
any evidence against Chopra. However, the BCCI had insisted on
Madhavan investigate other Informations and clear his name. The same
was the case with Kapil Dev and Wadekar. The
questioning was an effort to clear Chopra's name so that he is able
to continue with cricket, if not found guilty. Chopra was first
named in the 14-member Indian team against Zimbabwe, but it was
later withdrawn by the BCCI. New
Delhi, Dec 13: A six-member delegation from three countries led
by International Cricket Council's (ICC) anti-corruption director
Sir Paul Condon on Tuesday met CBI officials to assess the role of
foreign players named by the agency in its report on betting and
match-fixing. Besides Condon, the other members included Martin
Hawkins and Bob Samanney (both from ICC), Desmond Fernando from Sri
Lanka, Greg Melick from Australia and Tim Gargreson from New
Zealand. They
met the CBI officials headed by joint director of agency's special
crime branch R N Sawani and reviewed the evidence against the
foreign players. The
162-page CBI report on betting and match-fixing names ex-captains
Alec Stewart (England), Brian Lara (West Indies), Hansie Cronje
(South Africa), Arjuna Ranatunga and Arvinda d'Silva (Sri Lanka),
Martin Crowe (New Zealand) and Asif Iqbal and Salim Malik
(Pakistan). Apart from the former skippers, the names of two more
Australian players Mark Waugh and Dean Jones figured in the CBI
report. The two sides discussed the issue for almost three hours.
Emerging out of the meeting, Condon refused to make any comment and
said “we will comment on the issue tomorrow.” Meanwhile, CBI
sources said the delegation enquired about the methods adopted by
the agency in collecting evidence against the foreign players Chennai,
Dec 12: The ICC anti-corruption director Sir Paul Condon on
Monday praised the work done by the CBI and the one-man Madhavan
commission in connection with the match-fixing scandal. Addressing
the media here, Condon said that he was thoroughly impressed with
the CBI and Madhavan's work. “The
CBI investigation has been very thorough and very professional.
There are allegations against some cricket players. It is for the
cricketing world to clear their role,” Sir Condon said, pointing
out that the CBI's role ends with the investigation of match fixing,
which did not involve investigation of the players. “With
the CBI report we have seen a major step forward in the fight
against corruption in cricket and I congratulate the team on its
thoroughness and professionalism,” he further said and went on to
added: “Our task now is to follow up on allegations and gather
evidence in areas over which the CBI has no jurisdiction - namely
the non-Indian players. We will be meeting with key figures from the
BCCI and the CBI. With their help, we are looking forward to moving
our global investigation forward.” He
said that his role was only to investigate on the malpractices and
corruption and not decide on the punishment. He would give his
findings and remedial recommendations to the head of ICC's Code of
Conduct, Lord Griffits, who along with a panel of judges drawn from
different countries would decide on the code of conduct and suggest
disciplinary action on the erring players. Sir Condon arrived here
on Sunday morning to join three other members of his team -
Australian Cricket Board (ACB) special Investigator Greg Melick, New
Zeealand's Tim Gresson and Sri Lanka's Desmond Fernando. Condon has
already met the BCCI President A.C. Muthiah and Madhavan on Sunday
night. The team left for Delhi on Monday evening to meet ministers
and senior officials of the Union government, CBI and police
officials. He would return to London on Wednesday. He
repeatedly pointed out that he was not in India to investigate the
players, but to assess the investigating process to look into the
malpractices. He also said that the individual countries in keeping
with their law would decide the punishment and judgment on the
players. The ACU would co-ordinate with the countries accordingly.
He said that the ambition is to wipe out such malpractices from the
world cricket before the World Cup in South Africa in 2003. Madhavan
to question Kapil, Chopra, Wadekar Chennai, Dec 11: Cricket board's
anti-corruption commissioner K Madhavan would examine former Indian
cricket team coaches Ajit Wadekar and Kapil Dev and off-spinner
Nikhil Chopra in the match-fixing and betting allegations. Madhavan, who is in Chennai to hold discussions with
International Cricket Council investigation team led by Sir Paul
Condon on Monday, told media persons that "I will submit my
observations on Chopra to board within three days." He said
though the CBI had cleared Wadekar, Kapil Dev and Chopra, board
(after its November 29 special general body meeting in Calcutta) had
advised him to examine them for any further information on
match-fixing allegations. On punishments meted out to Mohd
Azharuddin and Ajay Sharma (life ban) and Ajay Jadeja and Manoj
Prabhakar (five year ban), he said “I was assigned to examine them
and found them guilty. I have nothing to say on punishments”. On
the players seeking legal redress, Madhavan said, "It is left
to them". Cordon and five other officers of the ICC and Madhavan
are to hold discussions with board president A C Muthiah at an
undisclosed venue. Madhavan said, “We are meeting Muthiah for sure
this evening. But I don't know the place.”Condon, a former London
police chief, is likely to meet the press on Monday afternoon before
he leaves for Delhi. The ICC team arrived here this morning for
investigations in the wake of board sanctions against tainted
cricketers last week following a probe on match-fixing by the CBI
and an internal inquiry by Madhavan. Cronje lawyers ready to fight it out for him Johannesburg,
Dec 11: Disgraced former South African captain Hansie Cronje
intensified efforts to have his life ban overturned, when his
lawyers served papers on the United Cricket Board of South Africa (UCBSA)
applying for an interdict to block the decision. Cronje's attorney,
Les Sackstein, said that the UCBSA's action in banning the cricketer
for life was “impeachable, unconstitutional and unlawful. We
simply believe that they (UCBSA) cannot deprive a man of his right
to earn a living”. “Mr
Cronje has admitted that he did something very wrong and he will not
do it again. He has been brutally treated by the media and now the
same is happening from the board, he has the right to get on with
the rest of his life,” Sackstein said. "We
would rather negotiate than litigate but (UCBSA president) Percy
Sonn has refused to speak to us and even claimed that Mr. Cronje
should not be allowed to play beach cricket. That is one of the many
issues included in our papers, which run to over a hundred pages. “He
has had four offers of coaching work from schools and other
institutions but has had to turn them all down. Can you imagine
anything more ghastly?” Justifying the move to apply for an
interdict against the life ban, Sackstein said Cronje had complied
fully with the King Commission charged with investigating corruption
in South African cricket when he testified in June this year. Azhar
part ways with his lawyer Jethmalani Mumbai, December 9:
After the BCCI’s life ban on Azharuddin, the former Indian captain now
finds himself without any legal counsel after parting ways with lawyer
Mahesh Jethmalani. However, that doesn’t have
anything to do with the BCCI’s life ban on Azhar, says Mr. Jethmalani.
The Mumbai based lawyer says he stopped working for Azhar some time
back, “just after the Central Bureau of Investigation report came
out.” “I was hired by Azharuddin to
advise him on prosecution. He was planning to sue a few publications and
Tehelka.com for implying that he was involved in match-fixing. “We
never went ahead and filed any cases because I told him to wait for the
CBI to prosecute the case and come out with its report,” said Mr.
Jethmalani. The cricketer also planned to sue
MacDonald’s for an advertisement slogan for its ice-cream, saying,
“Azhar Ne Bhi Khaya Hai”. He added, “I was never hired to defend
Azhar. That was never the understanding.” According to some reports, Mr.
Jethmalani was sacked by Azharuddin for advising him to play up the
communal card as defence — a move that backfired on the cricketer. “On the contrary, I was the one
who censured him for making that stupid minority statement that got him
into trouble. I was away in London at the time, and read about the
statement in newspapers. “I immediately called up Azhar and asked him
to retract the statement,” said Mr. Jethmalani. “I don’t know whether Azhar plans to appeal, as I have not
been in touch with him since we parted ways. However, I think he should
hire a Delhi lawyer for his case. I can’t take up his case as I am
based in Mumbai.” Mr. Jethmalani said. CBI can find more dirt if they are willing to: Ali Irani Mumbai, Dec 9: Banned Indian cricket team physio Ali Irani has said that he fixed muscles and joints and not matches and if CBI further pursued its investigation it would be able to nail more people as guilty. “The more CBI investigates the betting and match-fixing scandal, the more dirt they will find,” Irani said. He expressed his dissatisfaction over Madhavan’s report to the Cricket Board (BCCI) saying the report at the end just said the CBI version was correct and there was nothing new there. “If it is
(report) right and if they have a conscience, then many more will be
found guilty and for that to happen they should continue
investigating,” he added. “Maybe I was blamed because I was nice to
everybody. That my services were sought by the Board for 10 years only
proves that I was good at my job,” Irani said. “I fixed muscles and
joints, not cricket matches and this ban (5 years) does not concern me
as I left the team in 1997 and I am through with cricket for now,”
Irani added. “I see nearly 200 patients everyday and I have no time to
think about anything. My patients, including many sportsmen and stars,
have been my strength. I have no intentions of going to the court to
challenge the verdict as I prefer going to ‘janata’ (people’s)
court,” he said. “Let me place the facts before the people and let
them judge my case because now the people are under the impression that
each time a match was fixed, Dr Ali Irani was the go between which is
not true. I will definitely appeal to the Board as the Board is still
the parent body,” he added. Azhar
got away with a light
punishment: Border December 8, 2000: Former
Australian great and the highest run getter in test cricket, Allan
Border said that the former Indian captain Mohammad Azharuddin has
got off lightly for his role in match fixing scandal. He said, that
if Azhar had committed his crime in another walk of life, he would
be behind bars. Azharuddin was banned for life by BCCI for indulging
in match fixing. “ If he is guilty, which it seems
as though he is, then he is lucky not to be in jail”, Border said
while speaking to ABC radio. “ if you did that in the normal walk
of life, in a normal business practice, then you would find yourself
ten years in the clink.” Border added that he had nothing personal
against Azharuddin, whom he played against many times during his 156
test match career. “ I like him as a fellow and to see him
involved is shattering. He said. He went on to add that life ban was
not a severe punishment because “at 38 Azhar is finished
anyway.” Jodhpur, Dec 8: Cricket board vice-president
Kamal Morarka lashed out at the action taken by the board against
guilty players terming it "hasty" and the whole procedure
"jerky". “There was undue haste in hanging the
players,” Morarka, who did not attend the disciplinary committee
meeting in Chennai on Tuesday, said. Morarka, who was openly against players being
punished, reserved his comments on the quantum of punishment meted
out the players. “They (board) should have weighed the pros and
cons before announcing their decision. However, their decision is
like a judgment of the court and unless I read this judgment, I can
not comment on it,” Morarka, also the vice president of Rajasthan
Cricket Board, said. Mumbai, Dec 8: Former Indian cricket team
Physio Dr Ali Irani, who has been banned by the cricket board for
five years in the match-fixing scandal, refused to speak to media
persons even as his staff and colleagues at the Nanavati hospital
insisted, “he is a fine doctor and a good human being”. The MD of the Nanavati hospital, Dr Mika Joseph said
here on Thursday, “Irani has worked here for the last 13 years. He
is a fine doctor and a good human being and I think we are lucky to
have him with us”. “The physiotherapy department is one of our
best and you can speak to his patients who refuse to believe or
leave him,” he added. Queried whether any action would be taken in
the wake of the ban, Dr Joseph said “no comments”. Dr Ashok Hatolkar, a colleague of Irani, said “we
have full faith in him because he is still as good a doctor today as
he was last night. I don't think just one news flash would change
anything”. “Even assuming the charges are true, it will amount
to an economic offence and Irani's competence as a doctor is beyond
reproach,” he said. Though Irani was busy with his patients in the
hospital, his secretary said he will not meet any reporters and
"we have standing instructions not to let the media in". Azhar
banned for life, Jadeja suspended for 5 years Chennai, Dec 5: Azharuddin and Ajay Sharma have been given life bans from participating in any form of cricket. Ajay Jadeja, Prabhakar and Ali Irani were given a suspension of five years. Nayan Mongia and Delhi grounds man Ram Adhar were exonerated. The board’s disciplinary committee reduced to the duo of board President A. C. Muthiah and Mr. K. A. Ramprasad spent more than three hours before announcing the verdict. The meeting was held in the boardroom of SPIC, a company that Mr. Muthiah heads. “To avoid any further criticism,
the board has decided to give a firm and final verdict”. Mr. Muthiah
said, while announcing it. The player’s contribution was taken into
contribution while coming to a decision. But they added that the players
conducted themselves in a manner, which is prejudicial to the interests
of the game of cricket. All the cricketers, who have been given these
punishments and Ali Irani, will not be eligible for an official benefit
match or the money that has accrued to their respective benevolent funds
managed by the board. BCCI President Mr. Muthiah said
“the decision has the backing of all of the entire board and the best
legal opinion has assured me that whatever decision we will take will
stand in court, since these people had violated the code of conduct of
the BCCI”. He denied reports that the Board had been pressured to
spare Jadeja and observed that the two postponements in arriving at a
decision could have sparked such speculation. The cricket chief also
clarified since Nikhil Chopra had not been cleared by the BCCI of the
charges made by the CBI, his selection to the Indian team is not
correct. Mr. Madhavan is to examine Chopra later. The
Board has allowed the players and Irani to appeal to it against the
punishment awarded to them. Punishment given to me is unfortunate: Prabhakar New Delhi, Dec 6:</ |