Rs 20 lakh seized from Chandila relative8217;s home

Another ex-cricketer detained in Delhi

INVESTIGATORS on Monday seized Rs 20 lakh from a cricket kit bag at the home of a relative of arrested player Ajit Chandila in Palwal,and picked up for questioning a former Ranji and ICL cricketer as the probe into the alleged spot-fixing racket spread deeper and wider.

The police also collected the voice samples of Chandila,bookie Manan and Jiju Janardhan,a close friend of Sreesanths,with the intention of matching them with the voices on tape.

The Rajasthan Royals,the IPL team to which the three arrested cricketers S Sreesanth,Ankeet Chavan and Chandila belong,lodged a complaint with the Delhi Police,accusing the cricketers of cheating and other offences. Police said the complaint mentions how the cricketers had violated the terms of their contract. The team management mentioned that three of its players were involved in discrepancies and that they came to know about unfair means adopted by them. They took the names of the players, said a police officer. The complaint will be included in the case registered on May 9.

Two individuals,one each from Chandigarh and Mumbai,also filed complaints with the Delhi Police on Monday claiming that they had been cheated as they had bought expensive tickets for the Rajasthan Royals matches. The complainants will be referred to as witnesses in the case,said police.

Meanwhile,BCCIs anti-corruption unit chief Ravi Sawani,who has been asked to head the Boards probe into the allegations,met Delhi Police Commissioner Neeraj Kumar and other top officials and offered all help.

Police sources said that former Ranji Trophy and ICL player Baburao Yadav had been detained in Delhi.

According to sources,Yadav is believed to have arranged a meeting between Chandila and arrested bookie Sunil Bhatia. His name allegedly figures in the tapped conversations. He will be arrested if we find his involvement, said a police officer.

Story continues below this ad

Investigators on Monday took Chandila to his aunts house in Palwal in Haryana,where they recovered Rs 20 lakh stuffed in a cricket kit bag which also contained Chandilas personal belongings. We recovered these after Chandila spoke about keeping the money there. We took him there,and he showed us the hiding place for the money. We have videographed the proceedings, an officer said.

A plea by Sreesanth asking for a copy of the FIR was disposed of by a Delhi court as the cricketers lawyer failed to show up.