CBI to re-examine Wadekar and Sidhu, examination of tapes over

The two had been examined by CBI earlier last month in connection with the match-fixing scandal and both have reportedly denied the allegations of bribery made by Prabhakar against Kapil Dev.

The sources said Singh and Wadekar, in their deposition before the agency, denied that they were aware of allegations made by Prabhakar that Kapil Dev had offered him Rs 25 lakh to play below his potential in a match against Pakistan in a triangular series in Sri Lanka.

The viewing of nine video tapes by the Special Crime Branch of the CBI was completed and these would now be handed over to the legal cell of the agency to examine whether they could stand scrutiny in a court of law.

Sidhu, who was named by Prabhakar as a witness to the offer allegedly made by Kapil Dev in a hotel room he shared with the former Indian opener, had told the agency that there was no truth behind the allegation, they said.

Wadekar, during his deposition, also denied that Dev was involved in any match-fixing, the agency sources said.

However, after Prabhakar’s deposition and submission of sensational video tapes secretly shot by him, the case had changed and re-examining of these two was necessary now, sources added.

About the tapes submitted by Prabhakar, the sources said that since tapes were only circumstantial evidence as per the law, it was necessary to cross-check with the players and officials.

Among the witnesses cited by Prabhakar during his 90-minute deposition on May 24, the CBI will also shortly examine others, including former skippers Mohammed Azharuddin, Sunil Gavaskar and Ravi Shastri, sources said.

Meanwhile, examination of bookies in Mumbai and other cities in connection with the match-fixing scandal was continuing, sources said, adding the bookies were identified during the investigations carried out by various other agencies, including Delhi Police.

In a related development, the Income Tax department said records and returns of three players hailing from northern region, two from Mumbai, one from Hyderabad and a BCCI official from Calcutta, were being scrutinised by its officials.