Bookie Sanjeev Chawla, who was involved in fixing of South Africa - India matches has been arrested

[#GreenRoars]

THE SHADOW of the cricket match-fixing scandal of 2000, involving the late South Africa captain Hansie Cronje, is back.

Key accused and bookie Sanjeev Chawla has been arrested in London following India’s request for extradition, and UK officials have written to Delhi Police asking for details about security arrangements and facilities in the jail he will be kept in.

In response, police have informed UK’s Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) — through the Ministry of External Affairs — that Chawla would be housed in Tihar Jail, which they described as a central facility following international standards.

Yasser Mehmood, press officer, CPS, told The Indian Express that Chawla was arrested on June 14. “The arrest was made following the Indian government’s extradition request. He faces charges of fixing cricket matches between India and South Africa in 2000. Chawla’s case will be heard at the Westminster Magistrates’ Court in London on October 3,” he said.

In July 2013, Delhi Police had filed a chargesheet in the scandal, naming Cronje who died in a plane crash in June 2002. Chawla and Cronje were named in a 70-page chargesheet by the crime branch for “fixing matches played between India and South Africa from February 16, 2000 to March 20, 2000 in India”.

Sources told The Indian Express the crime branch officer investigating the case received an e-mail in July, through the MEA, from Andrew Glover, a special prosecutor from the UK’s International Justice and Organised Crime Division. “In his letter, he told Delhi Police that Chawla, who was arrested on June 14, has raised several questions about security arrangements and facilities in their jails. Glover then asked Delhi Police to provide details about their arrangements and the jail he will be kept in,” sources said.

After consulting prosecutors and senior officials, Delhi Police sent their reply to the CPS early in August about Tihar, its history and the standards it follows. “They have also informed the CPS that Chawla will be provided a special cell with special security personnel,” a senior police officer said.

In their letter, police also wrote that the main objective of Tihar Jail is to reform its inmates, provide them with skills and education, and rehabilitate them in society. “We said that in Tihar Jail the objective is to engage, rehabilitate, and reform its inmates. Facts about products made in Tihar by inmates, which are marketed outside, were also conveyed,” police sources said.

Investigators are said to have collected crucial details about Chawla with the help of Interpol and associates of the bookie. One of the associates told police that he met Chawla in London in September 1999 and decided to fix matches to the tune of ?1.5 million, police said.

Chawla later went back to the clothing business and also owned a restaurant in Whitechapel, London, they said. The then anti-extortion unit of the Delhi Police Crime Branch is investigating the case since 2000.

“After filing the chargesheet, investigators started paperwork for the extradition of Chawla. In mid-2014, they sent all the extradition-related documents to the Ministry of Home Affairs and MEA”” a senior police officer said.

The first major match-fixing scandal in cricket came to light in April 2000, when Delhi Police intercepted a conversation between blacklisted bookie Chawla and Cronje, in which it was learnt that the South Africa captain had accepted money to lose matches. Chawla has been also accused of offering money to two England players in August 1999.

http://indianexpress.com/article/sp...ants-assurance-on-delhi-jail-quality-3030082/

 

[#GreenRoars]

Is this the same story which ended Azharuddin's career??

 

[Suleiman]

Is this the same story which ended Azharuddin's career??

Different bookie though, MK Gupta.

 

[Bhaag Viru Bhaag]

These bookies are giving a bad name to India.

 

[Sherlock]

These bookies are giving a bad name to India.

It's the profession [specifically using their long tentacles to contact players still involved]. Can't blame India or any other country that these bookies come from.

 

[Sports_Psychologist]

It's the profession [specifically using their long tentacles to contact players still involved]. Can't blame India or any other country that these bookies come from.

But still they're mainly from India,

 

[Buffet]

Delhi Police did a good job in exposing bookies and Cronje as well. Hopefully, this person gets an appropriate punishment.

 

[Monsee]

There has to be a reason why almost all, I repeat almost all bookies have come out of India...if they want this 'Fixing' problem to go away or stop, period, Indian govt/BCCI/Police etc. have to do more!

Whether most Indians don't like my comments or attack me here, no one can say I made this up i.e. almost all cricket bookies have pretty much been from India or of the Indian origin

 

[Major]

after 16 years :/

 

[jusarrived]

There has to be a reason why almost all, I repeat almost all bookies have come out of India...if they want this 'Fixing' problem to go away or stop, period, Indian govt/BCCI/Police etc. have to do more!

Whether most Indians don't like my comments or attack me here, no one can say I made this up i.e. almost all cricket bookies have pretty much been from India or of the Indian origin

Bookies are not the root cause and you cannot eliminate them .

 

[PakLFC]

India is the epicentre of match fixing activities. We all know that.

 

[Zahid87]

There has to be a reason why almost all, I repeat almost all bookies have come out of India...if they want this 'Fixing' problem to go away or stop, period, Indian govt/BCCI/Police etc. have to do more!

Whether most Indians don't like my comments or attack me here, no one can say I made this up i.e. almost all cricket bookies have pretty much been from India or of the Indian origin

Its because India has by far the largest, unregulated, cricket related gambling market. For what its worth, Pakistan has the second largest.

The problem is betting is illegal, and hence unregulated.

In India, its become a large shadow industry. Too many people, that includes both underworld, and well connected people, are making money from it. One of the odd things about it is it gives an alternative, 'fun' outlet for people to use their 'black money', which otherwise go into gold and real estate.

There is no chance of betting being made legal in India, or Pakistan, or even in Dubai. There will always be an unregulated betting market. As long as ordinary punters in India keep betting, you will never reduce the chances of fixing taking place. People in India working in the industry will always be there too, because of the money involved.

 

[Abdullah719]

Arrested bookie Sanjeev Chawla to confess how spot-fixing works in international cricket

Who is the former top Indian cricketer named by bookie Sanjeev Chawla during his interrogation by sleuths in London?

And who was the Indian bookie splurging loads of cash at a Las Vegas casino earlier this month after obtaining cash through hawala?

Crucial information pertaining to match-fixing is slowly trickling out from the woodwork even as Delhi Police gears up to interrogate a host of former cricketers for their alleged involvement in match-fixing following the extradition of top bookie Chawla from London.

Chawla, whose case will be heard at the Westminster Magistrates' Court in London on 3 October, has told his interrogators that spot-fixing (which replaced match-fixing) was rampant with huge stakes of money at play.

Last week, his interrogators conveyed to the Delhi Police how a top Indian bookie splurged Rs 5 crore every day for a four-day gig at one of the biggest casinos at Las Vegas, home to gambling in the US.

"The bookie, based in South India, organised cash through hawala and had a great time during his stay in Vegas," a top Delhi Police source said.

Chawla, considered the biggest cog in the "fixing wheel" by cops in Delhi and Mumbai, could be headed for India next month, requests for his extradition by the Ministry of External Affairs already accepted by the British government through its foreign office.

"Chawla also named a top Indian cricketer, now retired but we will not be able to reveal the name," a top source in the Crime Branch of Delhi Police said in a brief interview. Investigators in London have agreed to share crucial details they collected from Chawla with the help of Interpol and associates of the bookie.

Officers of the Crime Branch said they are in touch with their counterparts in Mumbai, Chennai and a few other cities high on the betting radar and would be interrogating a large number of alleged bookies and former cricketers.

Interrogators of Chawla said the bookie also shed some light on the recent West Indies-Pakistan match at the Sheikh Zayed Stadium in Abu Dhabi and how the Caribbean batting in the third and final T20 was a total give away of what Chawla described as "institutionalised fixing of international cricket".

Chawla explained the entire fixing operandi and how it worked in this particular match, Delhi Police officials who are in touch with his interrogators in London said. In the end overs, with decent wickets in hand, the hard-hitting Caribbean batsmen like Samuels and Pollard - known for hitting huge sixes - played dots and took singles, not even attempting to hit a boundary. "He (Chawla) explained how the team - a T20 World Cup winner few months ago - folded up at an abysmal low of 103/5 in 20 overs, failing miserably for the third consecutive time and how the matches looked fixed because nothing in cricket or in logic explained the way the West Indies batted in the three match series." Chawla explained to his interrogators - who, in turn, explained the same to the counterparts in Delhi.

"Anyone betting on the Caribbean cricketers will expect the team to play its natural game and accelerate at least from 16 overs onward with five wickets in hand and place bets accordingly. But strangely, WI did just the opposite. They scored only 26 runs in last four overs and 28 runs in last five overs with five wickets still in hand. Nothing in cricket or in logic can explain West Indian batting," said Atul Kumar, an author and exponent of modern day sports betting and cricket spot-fixing. Cops of Delhi Police say they will work on multiple leads when Chawla returns to India and that interrogations will happen in both cases - the 2000 India-South Africa series and the 2013 IPL spot-fixing.

"A lot depends on what Chawla talks about. The Delhi Police will interrogate him once he is in our custody. But it will be a special team working on him and his cases," says Kailash Vij, a top officer of Delhi Police who probed the 2013 IPL case. Once Chawla returns, he will be interrogated by the office of the Special Commissioner of Police, currently headed by additional director general Taj Hassan.

"That case of 2000 was never closed, an extradition means the case will be reopened and interrogations start," adds Vij. The IPL case, which named a number of bookies and a handful of cricketers - including S Sreesanth - is now being heard in the Delhi High Court after a lower court rejected the same.

Former Indian cricketer Kirti Azad, who has recently petitioned the Prime Minister's Office to take a re-look into the 2013 IPL Spot Fixing scandal, said he was "half-confident” about Chawla's confessions.

"Bookies talk a lot, unless he offers some genuine leads to the cops, this case will also fall through. But the fact that he is coming to India and will be housed in Tihar Jail is good news. At least he will be open to interrogations," says Azad.

Delhi Police has already informed UK's Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) - through India's External Affairs Ministry - that Chawla would be housed in Tihar Jail, Delhi's maximum security prison that has, on previous occasions, housed a host of corporate captains and top politicians and maintains high boarding and lodging standards. Chawla had raised several questions about security arrangements and facilities in Indian jails and urged cops in Britain to seek details about their arrangements and the jail he will be lodged.

Chawla has been told by the Ministry of External Affairs that he will be provided a special cell with special guards.

Chawla was arrested on 14 June, 2016, following New Delhi's extradition request. He faces charges of fixing cricket matches between India and South Africa in 2000. The Delhi Police, in July 2013, had filed a chargesheet in the scandal, naming Hansie Cronje who died in a plane crash in June 2002. Chawla and Cronje were named in a 70-page chargesheet by the crime branch for "fixing matches played between India and South Africa from 16 February, 2000 to 20 March, 2000 in India.

The first major match-fixing scandal broke in April 2000, when Delhi Police intercepted a conversation between Chawla and Cronje, in which the South Africa captain had accepted money to lose matches. Chawla has been also accused of offering money to two England players in August 1999.

http://m.firstpost.com/sports/arres...g-works-in-international-cricket-3026476.html

 

[anuk]

this is one of the great leacies the indian cricket has left us with. i wonder how many of the 90s and the early 00s indian cricketers were actually not on the take.

 

[gani999]

this is one of the great leacies the indian cricket has left us with. i wonder how many of the 90s and the early 00s indian cricketers were actually not on the take.

Almost everyone was clean apart from Azharuddin, Ajay Jadeja, Kapil Dev and Ajay Sharma.

Some like Manoj Prabhakar were probably tempted but quickly turned informers.

Some others like Sidhu knew about it , but chose to stay silent as they were worried about the impact it could have on their careers.

I would recommend that you go on youtube and do a search for the 'Tehelka investigation on match fixing'. It is a six part video titled 'Fallen Heroes', that is a much watch for those interested in the Indian match fixing saga of the late 1990s.

 

[MenInG]

New Delhi, Jan 18 (IANS) A Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) team is currently in London to bring back bookie Sanjeev Chawla, who allegedly roped in many big cricketers like late South African skipper Hansie Cronje and ended their careers.

What no one knows till this day is that Chawla''s racket in the betting scandal was revealed after years of toil by the former CBI Joint Director Neeraj Kumar, who recovered the files related to the worst scandal to hit world cricket, that were buried deep in dusty police cupboards for almost 13 years.

In an exclusive chat with IANS, Neeraj Kumar said: "Chawla''s name first came to light in 2000-01 when Delhi Police busted the betting racket that involved international cricketers."

A court of inquiry was set up by the Delhi Police and Cronje admitted to throwing matches. He was immediately banned from all forms of cricket. He also named Saleem Malik (Pakistan), Mohammed Azharuddin and Ajay Jadeja (India).

Two South African cricketers, Herschelle Gibbs and Nicky Boje, were also listed as wanted by the Delhi Police for their role in the scandal. Cronje died in a plane crash in 2002.

Kumar said: "In 2013, when I was the Police Commissioner of the city, I decided to check files related to cricket betting racket, said the former cop.

"But was surprised to know that the files were missing and since the beginning of this case around 12-13 inspectors were changed. Nothing could be worse than that.

"Then I decided to find out all the missing files."

"With only a few days left in my retirement, I talked to then Special Commissioner of Police Dharmendra Kumar and Joint Commissioner Alok Kumar (now retired). I told them that I am going to retire on July 31, 2013 and I want those files before I go," Neeraj Kumar recalled.

"I was determined to file a charge sheet against Chawla and both Dharmendra Kumar and Alok Kumar proved ''dark horses'' for me," he said.

"Then we together started searching files. We called our officers and asked them to follow instructions strictly, and find those files anyhow.

"Thereafter, we started getting the records one by one. One will be surprised to know that we also recovered files from the almirahs of probe officers," Neeraj Kumar said.

He said: "After we got the files, there was a big challenge of re-starting the probe. I cannot forget the help that Dharmendra and Alok has provided.

"I very much remembered that I signed on the charge sheet against Chawla on the day of my retirement, it was my last project in service.

"Now, my initiative will be fulfilled as the CBI team is in London to bring back Chawla," he concluded.

https://www.outlookindia.com/newssc...cop-neeraj-kumar-reveals-ians-special/1711549

 

[Abdullah719]

Several ex-Indian cricketers could be in trouble as top bookie Chawla extradited from London

NEW DELHI: Several Indian cricket stars of yesteryears could be in trouble as Delhi Police extradites Sanjeev Chawla, the alleged mastermind of a match-fixing case involving former South African captain late Hansie Cronje, from London on Thursday.

Chawla, a British national as per Delhi Police charge sheet, absconding hitherto in the match fixing case, was linked with several international cricketers, including Indian players, sources in the crime branch of the Delhi Police revealed.

Dossier prepared on Sanjeev Chawla by Crime Branch reveals that several Indian cricketers were frequenting his bungalow, 4, Monk Ville Avenue, London and their phone numbers figured on Chawla’s phone list in Call Data Records (CDRs) recovered by police for the period of January to March 2000.

It was during period this period (February-March 2000) when conspiracy to fix matches was unearthed during India-South Africa series played in India. “As Chawla had slipped to London, he could not be interrogated and subsequently the CDRs connecting the then Indian cricketers with the global bookie was not pursued,” a former commissioner of Delhi police told IANS.

Crime Branch has also gathered documents from Scotland Yard, whose sleuths arrested Chawla in 2001 in another betting scandal involving English players. On the basis of a statement of former England all rounder Chris Lewis who alleged that Chawla had offered bribe to the then England Captain Alec Stewart to under perform in matches, the Scotland Yard questioned Chawla and a prominent Indian sports promoter.

During investigation it was revealed that several players from India, Pakistan, West Indies and South Africa were in touch with Chawla and many visited bookie’s restaurant, East is East, located at 230, Commercial Road London EI 2NB.

Regarding Chawla’s relations with Dubai based betting syndicates, former Delhi police commissioner Ajay Raj Sharma said a UAE number, used by a member of the underworld was initially traced by the Delhi police, however Chawla’s links with underworld will be probed once he is interrogated in police custody.

The Delhi police charge sheet reveals that phone number of Krishna Kumar (of T-Series music group) one of the associates of Sanjeev Chawla, was directly linked with a phone number of Saheen Haithley, an alleged member of underworld operating from Dubai in early 2000.

” I am eagerly awaiting the outcome of questioning of Chawla, the mastermind of match-fixing case who paid huge amounts to several cricketers to change results of important international matches. His interrogation will unravel more scandals of the past,” said Ajay Raj Sharma, former IPS officer who headed Delhi Police when match-fixing case rocked the cricketing fraternity across the globe. IANS

https://www.indiapost.com/several-e...-as-top-bookie-chawla-extradited-from-london/

 

[Monsee]

So, where are all those Indian posters who always claimed what could the Indian authorities do to stop betting/fixing and that it is hard to prove such crimes blah blah blah!

Now it seems all those claims will be laid to rest and all those 'Clean' Indian players will be named and shamed...if this inquiry goes through well (almost impossible in a corrupt country), I expect some big names to fall. Stay tuned!

 

[sweep_shot]

Well done. Better late than never.

He should have been arrested a long time ago.

 

[Ryw]

‘Bookie’ Sanjeev Chawla throws a googly, high court sends him to Tihar

Sanjeev Chawla pointed to three letters of assurance sent by the government to London that sought his extradition on grounds that he had to face trial for the match-fixing scandal of 2000.

Just a day after a local court gave Delhi Police 12 days to question alleged bookie Sanjeev Chawla, the Delhi High Court on Friday told the police to send Chawla to Tihar prison right away till it decides on his petition that claimed the police were not entitled to interrogate him.

The high court’s interim verdict - it shall resume the hearing on Wednesday next - came on Sanjeev Chawla’s plea that pointed to three letters of assurance sent by the government to London that sought his extradition on grounds that he had to face trial for the match-fixing scandal of 2000.

He also pointed out that the government had clearly told the UK court that he would be housed in Tihar jail.

Justice Anu Malhotra did not deliver a verdict on Sanjeev Chawla. But since the government sought time to get back with its stand, Justice Malhotra directed that Chawla should be “lodged at the Tihar Jail, Delhi in terms of the said Letters of Assurances of the Ministry of Home Affairs referred to hereinabove till further directions of this Court”.

Chawla’s petition, if it is successful, would block any attempt by the Delhi Police to get him to reveal names of his alleged accomplices in Dubai during the match-fixing scandal that changed cricket forever.

Chawla is one of the central figures in the scandal that the police stumbled across when it was investigating extortion calls from a phone number registered in Dubai. Chawla, according to the police, had been in touch with this phone number and was placed under surveillance as well.

It was during this probe that the cops allege, they came across the conspiracy between Chawla and the South Africa team captain Hansie Cronje, for one, to fix matches in South Africa’s tour of India in 2000.


Chawla was extradited to India on Thursday after unsuccessfully fighting the effort for four years.

The extradition is counted as a huge achievement, particularly because this was the first high-profile extradition from the UK under a 1992 treaty signed by the two countries.

Senior lawyer Vikas Pahwa, who appeared for Chawla, told the high court that the extradition was done only when the investigation is complete, the charge sheet was filed and the court concerned took cognizance of the charges.

Reading out the communication (letters of assurances) sent by the Indian government requesting extradition says that the government had given undertakings that he would face trial in a court in India.

Pahwa also underlined that Indian authorities had specifically mentioned that Chawla would be kept in Tihar jail and had even mentioned the ward number of the central prison where he would be lodged.

“The FIR was registered in 2000 and the charge sheet was filed in 2013. The investigation is complete and hence he cannot be kept in police custody.

The government of India has violated its own undertakings given to the British government seeking extradition,” Pahwa submitted.

At one point, Justice Malhotra pointed out that Christian Michel, the alleged middleman in the AgustaWestland scandal, was taken into CBI custody even though he was also extradited.

The judge asked Pahwa what made Sanjeev Chawla’s case any different. Pahwa responded that the fundamental difference between the two cases was that in Michel’s case, the investigators had not filed the charge sheet when he was brought to India.

https://www.hindustantimes.com/indi...-delhi-cops/story-qgOXaphNot9q0ZDzXFAeSM.html

 

[MenInG]

BCCI anti-corruption chief Ajit Singh on Friday said he will request Delhi Police to allow his team to question Sanjeev Chawla, an alleged bookie and key accused in one of cricket’s biggest match-fixing scandals that involved late South Africa captain Hansie Cronje. Chawla, who was extradited from the United Kingdom on Thursday, has been sent to 12-day police custody by a trial court, which he has challenged in the High Court. Singh said talking to Chawla might help the BCCI get some valuable information for future investigations.

“We will contact the Delhi police as he is in its custody. We would like to know from Delhi Police what all information he has shared with it. And if possible, we would like to talk to him also but totally depends on Delhi Police’s permission,” Singh told PTI.

Also read: ‘Need to probe Chawla’s links in India and Dubai’

“It is an old case and if it is time barred in our courts, it doesn’t make a difference. We can at least update our data in terms of anything new he reveals which may not have been in public domain. “He could know so and so person who was involved in corruption and if there was a bookie involved and that bookie may still be active. If he is not on our radar, at least we will have that information with us,” said the BCCI ACU boss.

Singh said if they don’t get the permission to talk to Chawla, he will welcome the information Delhi Police shares with him and his team. “There might be certain aspects which he knows and we may not know and he reveals that to Delhi Police and then it can share that with us. Then we are better prepared for the future in the sense that we can add a few people in our suspect list,” said the former Rajasthan DGP.

“They may not allow the involvement of any other agency (like BCCI ACU) but we will request them to help us with whatever he has communicated to them,” added Singh. The trial court, which ordered the 12-day custody of Chawla to Delhi Police, directed the accused to be produced on February 25. The court was informed that Chawla, who was brought back on Thursday, was involved in fixing of five matches and has to be taken to various places and confronted with certain people in order to unearth the larger conspiracy.

Cronje, who died in a plane crash in 2002, was also involved, police told the court. The former South Africa captain had confessed to his role in the scandal in a tearful submission before the King’s Commission inquiry in his country in 2000. Chawla is alleged to have played a central role in conspiring with Cronje to fix a South African tour to India in February-March 2000. The British court documents say Chawla is a Delhi-born businessman who moved to the United Kingdom on a business visa in 1996, but continued to make trips to India.

https://www.hindustantimes.com/cric...i-acu-chief/story-tjQU6J8d2giqkMgnlPgrKJ.html

 

[MenInG]

Even as cricket struggles to come to terms with coronavirus pandemic, which has put the world on a halt, the prime accused in the 2000 Hansie Cronje match-fixing case, Sanjeev Chawla has dropped a bomb.

In his disclosure statement to the Delhi Police, the London-based cricket bookmaker has reportedly claimed that "no cricket match is fairly played" and "…all the cricket matches which people see are fixed".

Chawala, who was extradited to India from the UK in February, is one of the main accused in the match-fixing scandal that also involved former South Africa captain late Hansie Cronje.

The Delhi-born bookmaker, as reported by Indian Express, said in a supplementary charge sheet submitted to the court that cricket matches are like "movies which are already being directed by someone".

Chawla, while also confessing that he was involved in match-fixing for many years, said he could not give more details since "a very big syndicate/underworld mafia is involved in this matter and they are dangerous people and if he says anything they will get him killed".

The report also added that Chawla had revealed before the police that the syndicate had on its target the case's investigation officer DCP (Crime Branch) Dr G Ram Gopal Naik and that his life was under threat.

On March 28, a Delhi court dismissed the bail application moved by Chawla. The bookie sought bail on the grounds that there is a threat of contracting coronavirus inside the "unhygienic" Tihar Jail.

Chawla had also claimed to have received life threats from various persons and said that the jail inmates made extortion demands from him.

But earlier this month, Chawla was granted bail by the court, saying the accused was in custody for the last 76 days and the probe was already completed in the case.

The court, however, directed him to give his voice sample and handwriting specimen to the investigating officer in the case.

Chawla was alleged to have played a central role in conspiring with Cronje to fix a South African tour to India in February-March, 2000.

The British court documents say that Chawla is a Delhi-born businessman who moved to the United Kingdom on a business visa in 1996 but continued to make trips to India.

https://www.outlookindia.com/websit...-sanjeev-chawla-in-shocking-revelation/353823

 

[MenInG]

New Delhi: This news development may shake your faith among cricketing stars whom you hold in high esteem. These stars allegedly follow a script prepared by bookies who fix the matches and the 22 players enact the role assigned to them, according to a statement given by Sanjeev Chawla, who was brought to India from London on the charges of match-fixing.

Sanjeev Chawla made this startling disclosure in his statement, in possession of Zee News, given to the Crime Branch of Delhi Police. Chawla, who is a big name in the world of match-fixing, has stated that all the cricket matches are fixed, the same way, as a film is first scripted and then directed.

He is understood to have said that the betting racket includes Syndicate as well as Underworld, and people involved are very dangerous and those who utter against them are eliminated. Sanjeev Chawla has also stated that the life of Investigating Officer Dr G Ram Gopal, Deputy Commissioner of Police, Crime Branch, is also under threat. DCP G Ram Gopal is the police officer who along with his team brought Sanjeev Chawla from London to India.

Sanjeev Chawla is accused of fixing a match between South Africa and India in the year 2000. He was helped by Captain Hansie Cronje of the South African team at that time. The same year, the Delhi Police had exposed the conversation between Hansie Cronje and Sanjeev Chawla. It was alleged that apart from Hansie Cronje, the amount of match-fixing was also given to some other players of the South African team, and these players were Herschelle Gibbs, Pieter Strydom, and Nicky Boje.

Initially, Hansie Cronje denied any match-fixing but later confessed to having committed this mistake, and subsequently, he was banned for life. Later, some players from South Africa, including Herschelle Gibbs, were punished but none got as big a punishment as Hansie Cronje. Hansie Cronje died in a plane crash in 2002.

The Delhi Police had registered an FIR in the case in the year 2000 but the charge sheet was filed after 13 years i.e. in 2013. Sanjeev Chawla could be brought to India in February this year after 20 years of hard work. This simply shows how powerful people are involved in this match-fixing racket.

Chawla's lawyer, however, claimed that Sanjeev has not given any such statement and that it is a concocted story floated by the Delhi Police.

Barring the legal aspect of the case, this report deals with the spirit behind cricket that gives the players a status of superstars. If the statement of Sanjeev Chawla holds any truth then it would give a severe jolt to cricket fans who rever this game like a religion.

According to a survey conducted by the International Cricket Council (ICC) in the year 2018, the number of cricket fans in the world is 100 crores and 90 percent, 90 crores, of them are Indians. The survey covered fans aged from 16 to 69 years, and their average age was 34 years.

This revelation can be dismissed as it was stated by a bookie involved in the match-fixing. Notably, this betting racket is not limited to the era of Hansie Cronje and Chawla. Rather, the match-fixing has been a part of cricket since the 90s, and most of the Cricket Board have been trying to protect them rather than freeing the board from this corruption.

Zee News today also spoke to Alok Kumar, retired joint commissioner of Delhi Police's Crime Branch, about this nexus, as he was the first to investigate the matter.

https://zeenews.india.com/cricket/c...njiv-chawla-reveals-untold-truth-2288861.html