N.Srinivasan , the BCCI President refused to quit saying he has done no wrong,even after his son-in-law Gurunath Meyappan was arrested for contacts with the bookies and his confession he bet on the IPL matches .
Following is the full text of BCCI President N Srinivasan‘s statement at the press conference on Sunday.
The last few days have been difficult for the BCCI and for me as the President. You will appreciate that these days have also been very difficult for me as a father and as father-in-law. However, I sit here as the President of the BCCI and put aside all personal feelings. I can assure you that I will not shirk from my duties.
However difficult it may be, the BCCI will act without fear and favour to investigate and, if the circumstances warrant, punish any player and match officials, team management or franchise that have breached BCCI or IPL regulation.
The BCCI’s Anti-Corruption Unit report on the allegation of spot-fixing by the Rajasthan Royals players S Sreesanth, Ankeet Chavan, Ajit Chandila and Amit Singh will be issued on time. The BCCI will continue to offer assistance to the police and if the inquries bring any suspicion on any other players.
With regard to Mr Gurunath M, the legal process has already started and he’s facing police investigation. The BCCI has already taken the decision to provisionally suspend him from all activities in cricket and particularly from all involvement within CSK franchise.
The disciplinary procedure under the operational rules shall be initiated and the commission including at least one member who is entirely independent to the BCCI will be formed to adjudicate whether Mr Gurunath is in breach of rules that require all persons subject to the operational rules not to act in any way which would have an adverse effect on the image or the reputation of the BCCI or the IPL which would otherwise bring the entity into disrepute.
The management of the other franchise, the Rajasthan Royals, will also be subject to same procedure. I am not part of this commission and I will not play any role in its appointment, deliberations or decision.
If anyone is found in breach or liable under the operational rules … the operation rules provide a number of potential sanctions ranging from fine to suspensions and in the extreme the termination of the franchise.
There has been a lot of media comment on Clause 11.3 of the franchise agreement and whether Mr Gurunath is an owner of the franchise. It is for this commission to look into this.”
If Gurunath is not connected to IPL, BCCI, why is he suspended by the BCCI and from what?
In a release issued on Sunday morning, the Indian board said: “The BCCI has taken note of the detention by Mumbai Police of Gurunath Meiyappan, who is a member of the team management of Chennai Super Kings. As an accredited team official, Mr Meiyappan is subject to the provisions of the IPL operational rules and the BCCI anti-corruption code for participants. Pending further investigations and any subsequent hearing by the BCCI disciplinary committee or the IPL code of behaviour committee, Mr Meiyappan has been suspended by the BCCI.”
IPL Fair Play Awards.
Gurunath Meyappan’s IPL Pass
IPL site removed the name of Chennai Super Kings from the Fair Play Award List in its site yesterday.
Yet CSK was awarded the IPL fair Play Award yesterday, after CSK lost its Final Match to Mumbai Indians!
CSK’s Loss in the Finals:
“It will look ridiculous if CSK wins’and the Trophy is presented to Srinivasan by the BCCI Charman Rajiv Shukla.
So, lose the match convincingly to enable the golden goose alive”
Was thet the instruction to CSK?
Looks so, considering the way Dhoni sent in Bravo instead of him coming in at the crease when wickets were falling, the ridiculous, almost voluntary gifting away of wickets by the CSK.
Srinivasan seems to be emerging as the Sonia Gandhi of BCCI!
CCTV Footage shows the bookies and Cricketers in The Hotel .
Cricketers will find it impossible to deny this.
What did Sreesanth do by way of Gifts?
IPL6 Match Fixers
The night following S Sreesanth‘s Rs 40-lakh towel-change over on May 9 at the Mohali match was one of gifts, girls and glee.
The CCTV footage, obtained by TOI exclusively, from a five-star hotel in Chandigarh‘s Sector 35 where Rajasthan Royals team stayed, shows, according to Punjab Police, the Kerala pacer, bookie Jiju Janardan and the other tainted player Ankeet Chavan meeting, exchanging gift packets and engaging in a talkfest with girls in the third floor foyer just outside their rooms.
Their second-by-second action stretching from 10pm to 6am was captured by six CCTV cameras. The evening for the trio began three hours after the victorious Rajasthan Royals team returned to the team hotel at 7.30pm, reveals the footage acquired by Delhi and Punjab police.
Even as other players retired to their rooms, Chavan, holding a gift bag, along with Jiju knocked at Sreesanth’s room at 10.15pm. The tainted pacer opened the door and started jauntily walking around in his training gear.
As Jiju and Sreesanth continue talking, the footage shows a Delhi policeman eavesdropping. Nearly 10 minutes after taking the packet from Chavan, Jiju, Sreesanth and Chavan meet a 20-something woman in a black tiered lace dress in the foyer.
The woman stays outside Sreesanth’s room until she and other players are joined by two more men as Sreesanth goes into his room to change, the footage shows. At 10:55pm, Chavan, Sreesanth and the woman are seen leaving the hotel. After four hours, Sreesanth is again spotted with a different woman, attired in a white-and-black party dress at 2:19am.
They are trailed by Chavan, leading into the pacer’s room where they stay for nearly an hour, shows the footage. At 3.55am, Sreesanth returns to the foyer. He tumbles, nearly falls and then glides along the wall until he’s helped by Chavan. The two disappear from the foyer for two hours. Sreesanth returns to the foyer alone with a packet in his hand at 5:35am.
The List of those involved in IPL 6 Match Fixing.( as on 26 may 2013)
1. S Sreesanth
First among those arrested from Mumbai, currently under Delhi police custody and is being interrogated. Rajasthan Royals has suspended his contract. Accused of spot fixing.
2. Ajit Chandila
Rajasthan Royals player, whose contract has also been suspended. Chandila was also arrested on May 15 night. So far, rs 20 lakh cash has been found from a cricket kit bag at his aunt’s place. He too has been charged of spot fixing in IPL6.
3. Ankeet Chavan
Rajasthan Royals player from Maharashtra. He was also arrested with Sreesanth and Chandila. Says he made a mistake. His contract has also been suspended by RR.
4. Jiju Janardhan
Close friend of Sreesanth, Jiju is a former Kerala player, and had fell headlong into cricket betting. Said to be the brain behind Sreesanth’s downfall.
5. Amit Singh
A former Rajasthan Royals player and former Ranji player from Gujarat . BCCI has suspended him pending inquiry. He was also linked to the bookies.
6. Ramesh Vyas
A Mumbai bookie arrested by Mumbai police crime branch. Said to have links with Sunil Dubai who hs connections with dons Dawood Ibraham and Anees Ibrahim.
Late actor and wrestler Dara Singh’s son, Vindoo Dara Singh was arrested by Mumbai Police crime branch for having links with certain bookies. He was named by bookie Ramesh Vyas during interrogation.
8. The other accused bookies are
Deepak Kumar (Arrested)
Rakesh (Arrested)
Alpeshkumar Bhagwandas Patel
Prem Ramchandra Taneja
Ashok Vyas
Pandurang Kadam
Pravin Behra
Niraj Shah
Pankaj Shah along with Chandresh Patel (arrested) from Mumbai and Manan (Arrested) who operates from Ahmedabad.
All these are currently being interrogated by the Mumbai Police crime branch.
9. Baburao Yadav
Another former Ranji player arrested for being involved in the spot fixing scandal. He is said to have introduced bookie Sunil Bhatia to Chandila.
10. Manish Guddewar
A 32-year-old former Ranji player from Vidarbh, Manish Guddewar is said to have known Chandila and got him in touch with bookies. He is said to have played at the Indian Gymkhana Club at Nagpur with Baburao Yadav.
CSK ,Chennai Super Kings, who is owned by N.Sinivasan , The BCCI Prsident , is set to lose its Franchisee-ship of IPL.
Reason the current scandal involving Gurunath Meiyappan,CSK Boss, who has been arrested for his Links with the Bookies and ‘bets’ in IPL Matches.
Latest news is that IPL website has removed CSK Name from the Fair Play Awards List(25th May 7 PM).
“In further evidence that all is not well within the BCCI and the IPL, the official website of the lucrative Twenty20 league has removed the Fair Play Award table from its home page. While the Fair Play page is still accessible, IPL seems to have removed all links to the page from its official website “.TOI)
BCCI may terminate this agreement Group Company with immediate effect…if the Franchisee,any Franchisee Group Company/and/or any owner acts in any way which has a material adverse effect upon the reputation or standing of The League“(Clause 12.3)
On this ground CSK who have won two Finals and are a Finalist in IPL6 , 2013,,is set to lose its Franchise.
CSK is trying to evade this by declaring that Gurunath Meiyappan is not connected to CSK , excepting as an Honorary member of the Management.
Gurunath Meiyappan’s IPL Pass
Facts speak other wise.
“The latest statement from the CSK camps beggars belief. Here it is in full:
PRESS RELEASE
May 24, 2013
India Cements clarifies that Mr. Gurunath Meiyappan is neither the Owner, nor CEO / Team Principal of Chennai Super Kings. Mr. Gurunath is only one of the Members (Honorary) of the Management Team of Chennai Super Kings.
India Cements follows zero tolerance policy and if anyone is proved guilty, strict action will be taken immediately. India Cements assures full co-operation with BCCI and the Law Enforcement authorities.
Cloudy day in Bangalore. Hope we get a full game. Going to be a cracker.
gurunath meiyappan @gurunath7511 May
pic.twitter.com/O0FXUOfuuv
View photo
Chan @chanvivek11 May
@gurunath75 here is a pic of our man 😀 pic.twitter.com/lhYqBM55pt
Retweeted by gurunath meiyappan
View photo
gurunath meiyappan @gurunath7511 May
Training 3 pm today. Been a boring day so far. @russcsk where is the coach? Sleeping?
CSK management is now saying that Gurunath is not connected with CSK.
He has not signed the agreement with BCCI!
Pawar wants Srinivasan out
First it was Nationalist Congress Party chief Sharad Pawar who said that “if there is even an iota of honesty in Srinivasan, he should quit at BCCI president”. The NCP demanded Srinivasan’s immediate resignation from the BCCI.
If owner involved in betting, team must be scrapped: Subrata Roy
Later, speaking to Times Now channel, Sahara Group chief Subrata Roy said that if “the owner is involved in betting, then his/her IPL team should be scrapped.”
Roy also said that so long as N Srinivasan remains the BCCI chief, the Sahara Group will not sponsor Team India.
He demanded the termination of Srinivasan’s contract with BCCI. Roy’s Sahara Group had pulled out its team Pune Warriors India from IPL after BCCI decided to encash its bank guarantee following a financial dispute between the sports body and Sahara.
“We had no choice but to quit IPL. The BCCI chief did not even bother to reply to our letter. His behaviour was arrogant and a person like Srinivasan does not deserve to run BCCI,” said Roy.
I indicated in a post ,couple days of ago, raising some questions for ICC,BCCI,Franchises and a post expressing my view that in view of the proximity of MS Dhoni to N.Srinivasan,BCCI President, that Dhoni might be questioned for the IPL Match fixing because of the closeness of Sakshi Dhoni with Sakshi Jhula, who is a close friend of the arrested Sreeesanth.
I expect this in a couple of days after the excitement of the IPL6 Final is over, to avoid excessive publicity and a drop in match attendance.
CSK Boss, Gurunath , son-in-law of BCCI President was arrested in Mumbai and being produced in court on 25 May 2013.
Gurunath tried to buy time till 27 May to appear before the CBI, fearing arrest, expecting to be arrested and kept in custody at least for two days(Saturday and Sunday)
But unexpectedly he met with the CBI and was promptly arrested.
There is an angle worth pursuing.
The North Indian. especially the Kolkata lobby does not like the South Lobby, especially afer the unseating of Jagmohan Dalmiya who was hunted by AC Muthiah and Srinivasan.
Then came Lalith Modi affair, who was pursued with vigour by the BCCI, headed by the same Group.
The Money bags did not like this and they were waiting for an opportunity to score back.
To complicate the issue,N.Srinivasan has created a lot of enemies and heart burn by becoming the BCCI President.
His one time colleague AC Muthiah went to Court on Srinivasan.s conflict of interests , being BCCI President and a Franchisee , CSK.
As the Srinivasan Group tried to extricate themselves, the other Group seems to have brought in pressure mainly political to have Gurunath arrested.
Recall the link of an NCP MP with the IPL’s then Commissioner Lalith Modi and the Mumbai Political Big wig.
Now that Gurunath has been arrested , reportedly confessed to being friends with Vindoo Dara Singh ,did ‘ bet’ in a Kolkata Match and the CSK players used to entertain Gurunath, more skeletons are expected to tumble from the cupboard.
Srinivasan is expected to resign in the next twenty-four hours.
What did Gurunath reveal?
Ashwin, 44, minces no words while disclosing his brother-in-law’s alleged involvement in betting and spot-fixing. “Guru (he addresses Meiyappan that way) had several connections with known bookies from Chennai and Dubai and was regularly in touch with them even before the IPL started.” he said. “What began as a relatively smaller side-business became a full-fledged one over the years.”
Pointing out how Meiyappan is a Chettiar, a community known for its affinity to trade and business, Ashwin told dna: “He has been steadily increasing his foothold over my father’s business. Publicly, his wife and my sister Rupa is an executive director in India Cements, my father’s company, and Guru has agreed to merely remain the head of Chennai Super Kings.”
The MBA in finance from Cornell University is equally forthcoming about his father’s “questionable” decision to invest in a small aircraft, which needed refuelling, when he could own one. “On all his trips, to and from anywhere abroad, isn’t it strange that the mighty N Srinivasan has to waste four hours in Dubai every time while his aircraft refuels? And mind you, the fuel halt will not be at Kuwait, Sharjah or anywhere else,” the son of BCCI’s most powerful man disclosed.
“Who are these regular golf partners he plays with on these halts?” According to Ashwin, Srinivasan has the wherewithal to buy a bigger aircraft, but still chose to invest in one which requires a fuelling halt “for convenient reasons”.
Turning his ire to his brother-in-law again, Ashwin says Guru is purposely poisoning his parents’ mind to ensure that the rift between them widens. A year ago, Ashwin accused his father of homophobia and of using his clout to unleash a cycle of violence against him and his partner Avi Mukherjee. The couple alleged that the police picked them up from Escobar, an upmarket Bandra restaurant-pub, on April 30, 2012, and beat them with iron rods at the behest of Srinivasan.
Calling his brother-in-law ungrateful, Ashwin said: “He keeps raising my drug-addiction problem to tell people how he was pushed into lending a helping hand in my father’s businesses when even he knows that I am more qualified and experienced than him.” As proof that his partner and he stayed away from drugs since 2002, Ashwin showed dna their urine reports. Their psychiatrist Dr SL Khanna confirmed the same.
Ashwin reveals that his parents were unhappy when Guru and Rupa started dating each other after meeting at the Madras Club while playing pool. “They were livid because he was not a Brahmin, but a Chettiar. My mother, Chitra, threatened to disown Rupa, but my father, who cursed Guru and his family to the skies after gulping down five scotches every evening, had no qualms joining him over golf given the clout of his family-run AVM Group,” said Ashwin, who has in the past headed the projects department at the ABB Group’s Zurich office.
According to him, his parents were in talks with chess champion Viswanathan Anand for marrying Rupa, but she eventually married Guru. “When my maternal uncle Shankar passed away, my parents did not want to call them for the last rites, but I persisted with my mother and saw to it that they were called,” he revealed.
“Though Rupa and Guru have not spoken to me since I fell foul with my parents, I feel no rancour against them. But how can I tolerate him maligning me for a drug problem from a decade ago to manipulate my parents?”
According to highly placed sources, during the course of interrogation with Vindu and after corroborating certain electronic evidences, it got evident that Gurunath provided vital information about his team strategy to Vindu who further passed it on to the bookies. The CSK boss allegedly discussed team strategies with his Captain MS Dhoni before every IPL match.
Gurunath allegedly passed detailed information about what was the playing eleven , what did they plan if CSK won the toss, their target if they choose to bat first, bowlers who were to bowl crucial or initial six overs and more.
Sources informed that there is certain electronic evidence which suggest that Vindu on several occasions also took the main bookie on conference calls with the CSK boss.
Son-in-law of BCCI President and owner of Chennai Super King Gurunath Maiyappan was arrested by Mumbai Crime Branch after questioning him for three hours at Mumbai Police head-quarters regarding his alleged role in the ongoing IPL spot-fixing row.
Gurunath was allegedly in constant touch with Vindoo and it is because of this constant contact that the police decided to call him in for questioning.
Police sources claimed to have evidence indicating that Meiyappan was closely associated with the recently busted betting syndicate. “After questioning him, we will decide whether to make him an accused in the case or a witness,” an officer said.Meiyappan was summoned for questioning after Vindu told the cops about his association with him. Vindu claimed he had placed bets on IPL 6 matches on behalf of Meiyappan, who apparently lost Rs 1 crore in the process.Meiyappan had proved elusive for the police and media alike for the last few days. It turned up that he had been staying at the holiday home of his father-in-law N Srinivasan — the BCCIpresident and controlling shareholder of India Cements — in the picturesque Coaker’s Walk area of Kodaikanal. Gurunath left the hill station around 1.30pm in a car and arrived at Madurai airport around 5pm. He was accompanied by two men, one of whom was BCCI counsel and former Tamil Nadu advocate general P S Raman.
He left for Mumbai at 5.25pm, about half an hour after the police’s deadline had lapsed. “The private plane had obtained permission for departure between 5pm and 5.30pm. It left by 5.25pm,” said an airport officer.
I have been following the unfolding of the IPl6 Match Spot fixing for the past few days and had my suspicions on the BCCI,Temam Franchisees and even ICC.
Gurunath Meiyappan , CSK Boss with MS Dhoni
I indicated this in some of my posts filed under.Cricket”
Unfolding events seem to confirm my suspicions that the tops Administrators,IPl Franchisees BCCI, ICC, apart from more Players are involved in this scandal.
1, IPL Commissioner, BCCI.
a)Why did it take quite some time for the IPL Commissioner to comment on the scandal and that too in a very casual manner, dismissing this as an incident involving only he players being questioned when even the preliminary investigation was not on?
His latest comment as reported in dnaindia on Gurunath’s Involvement, raises the suspicions further for the same courtesy and primness was not evident when Sreesanth and the others were arrested?
”
“The Mumbai and Delhi Police are competent authorities and let them finish the investigations before jumping to any conclusions,” Shukla replied when asked whether Srinivasan should step down from the post of BCCI President accepting moral responsibility for the scandal.
“How can you term anyone guilty before the investigations are completed? Let the Police report be submitted and then we will be in a better position to talk further,” Shukla said.”
b) BCCI said, in the wake of Lalit Modi affair and match fixing in international matches, that it had personnel to monitor the movement of players, support staff and others to prevent match fixing?
What were they doing when all this drama took place?
Were they appointed at all?
c) Why no body from BCCI is making no sound bytes on this scandal, when they acted with alacrity in Modi’s case?
d) Vindu Singh’s naming of an IPL Franchisee as ‘Betting'( does he mean PWI Owner?)-what action do you propose?
Nothing?
2) To ICC.
a) Why a muted Reaction to the whole affair?
b) What was your ACU doing?
Or IPL can not be touched by ICC because of BCCI clout?
Or IPL is not under the purview of ICC?
c) If you say that the charges are not proved and you can not comment and take action, how come you banned Asad Rauf, the Umpire on the basis of Times of India report stating that he was sent gifts(undelivered) by the Bookies?
Asad Rauf
d) By the same principle you should have suspended these players, Sreesanth,Ankit and Chandila.
3) To Franchisees.
a) How is it that you control everything about the Players, and not about those who move with suspicious characters, especially in the same Hotel?
Story:
Until September 2008, BCCIregulation, Clause 6.2.4, kept in check players, administrators, managers, umpires and team officials, barring them from having direct or indirect commercial interests in any BCCI event.
But this conflict of interest proviso was reduced to a dead letter by the cricket body, paving the way for its president N Srinivasan to own Chennai Super Kings. A five-year litigation by former BCCI chief AC Muthiah in Madras HC in 2008 — now pending before the SC after a split verdict on April 28, 2011 — shows how amendments introduced at an AGM in Mumbai were tailored for Srinivasan. These enabled him to don the conflicting roles of ‘IPL tender’s designer’ and Chennai franchisee’s bidder. Srinivasan was BCCI honorary treasurer and president of TN Cricket Association when he acquired CSK in 2008.”
“PAKISTANI umpire Asad Rauf has been withdrawn from next month’s Champions Trophy tournament in England.
His withdrawal has sparked suggestions he is under Indian police investigation for spot-fixing, the International Cricket Council said overnight.
The announcement comes a week after police arrested three cricketers, including Test fast bowler Shanthakumaran Sreesanth, accusing them of deliberately bowling badly in exchange for tens of thousands of dollars during the current Indian Premier League.
The ICC said the decision was made after media reports on Wednesday “that the Mumbai police are conducting an investigation” into Rauf’s activities.
Chan @chanvivek11 May
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