CBI begins probe into match-fixing allegations

It will also go through the Justice Y V Chandrachud report which gave a clean chit to Indian cricketers and verify the swirl of allegations, including those by former cricketer Manoj Prabhakar whose statement started it all.

Three years ago, Prabhakar had claimed that he was offered money by a teammate to play below his potential during the 1994 Singer Cup in Sri Lanka. Prabhakar, however, has so far refrained from naming any player saying he had no legal protection in the absence of evidence.

Today, he said that he would “soon” make public all the details he had to back his allegations. Earlier, Prabhakar had said he had apprised a government official of the identity of a teammate who he claims offered him the bribe.

The CBI is also likely to examine all documents available with the BCCI which could be of any assistance to the case. Recently, after a meeting in Calcutta, the BCCI had said that it was willing to cooperate with any agency but had claimed that as far as matchfixing charges go, it was up to former chiefs I S Bindra and Raj Singh Dungarpur to clarify.

Bindra has accused some players and administrators of being involved in match-fixing and betting.

Meanwhile, Home Minister L K Advani said in the Lok Sabha today that investigators of Scotland Yard would arrive here to probe allegations of match-fixing concerning some English players but in which some Indian agents too could have been involved. Advani said that even Interpol’s help would be sought in the matter.

“When the Scotland Yard team comes here to investigate the allegations of match-fixing against English cricketers, we can also seek their help in our own investigations,” Advani said. Sports Minister Dhindsa denied the Congress’s suggestion that there was a delay of many days in ordering an inquiry into the match-fixing allegations. He held that he did not want to keep Parliament in the dark and was in fact holding wider consultations before starting the probe.

Priya Ranjan Das Munshi of the Congress wanted to know if the CBI probe would concentrate only on the South Africa-India matches or would also include matches India played with other countries as well. To this, Dhindsa replied that the CBI’s probe would be comprehensive and it would look into whatever came its way.

Advani, while promising “full protection” to all those who provide information to the investigators, ruled out legalising betting. Asked whether the Government could take action against a cricketer who had entertained a bookie in Sharjah during a tournament there in 1995 after the bookie was thrown out of the press enclosure, the Sports Minister said that “even though it is an old matter, it can be taken into account if it is brought to the notice of the investigating authorities.”