Chawla’s name pops up in bookie diaries

The ED today also received printouts of calls made over the last twomonths to and from the residences of about a dozen of these bookies aswell as those from the homes of three suspects Rajesh Kalra, Sanjeev Chawlaand Kishan Kumar.

A massive number-matching exercise is underway to get fresh leads in thecase. ED officials hope to zero in on some common telephone numbers in thereams of printouts, some possibily belonging to Indian cricket players whomay be on the match-fixing circuit.

However, some vital evidence appears to have been lost since Kalra hasreportedly told the ED during interrogation that he accompanied a DelhiPolice team to identify the houses of at least two bookies, who are nowabsconding. The bookies named by Kalra are Bittoo, a restaurant owner livingin Lajpat Nagar and Anand, who lived in Defence Colony and earned hislivelihood from betting. The address of a third big-time betting bookie,Khattar, could not be provided by Kalra and is said to have fled thecountry.

A blame game between the Delhi Police and the ED has begun with the latteragency maintaining that the bookies should have been nabbed the night Kalrahad identified their houses. Subsequently, when the ED teams visited LajpatNagar and Defence Colony, they had fled.

While the Delhi magistrate hearing the case has been informed about thedirectory, the ED is keeping the identity of the car dealer, described as a“former bookie,” a secret.

Sources say with little else except the Delhi Police FIR to work on (the EDis yet to receive the Chawla-Hansie tapes), they activated sources in theirintelligence wing and raided the bookie.

Meanwhile, 10 days after the match-fixing scam broke, the role of KishanKumar is under increasing scrutiny as Kalra has confessed to the actor beinga key liaison man for Sanjeev Chawla in Delhi.

Kalra has told Delhi Police that his role was limited to “obtaining aroaming SIM card” on Chawla’s request. To the ED, Kalra has said thatKishan Kumar was very much in the “reach” of the Delhi Police the day hewas arrested and that the actor was making reassuring telephone calls to himon his mobile phone even as he was being driven away to the policestation.

Incidentally, while Kalra has been making these “off-the-record”confessions during his custody with the ED, he has refused to make them partof his written statement, recorded before his lawyer. Kalra has claimed thatKishan Kumar was a “well-connected” man and that his life would be indanger if he gave a written confession about his “nexus” with SanjeevChawla.

Kalra also said that Chawla’s two brothers, Rajeev and Gagan, were aware ofall financial transactions. While Rajeev today faced preliminary questioningby the ED, Gagan was interrogated by the Delhi Police on the whereabouts ofhis brother.