M A I N   N E W S

‘Chawla gave money to Cronje’

CAPE TOWN, June 26 (PTI) — Johannesburg sweet shop owner Hameed Cassim ‘Banjo’ today said he had arranged a meeting between bookmaker Sanjay Chawla and sacked South African cricket captain Hansie Cronje in a hotel in Durban during a one-day match between South Africa and Zimbabwe early this year.

Testifying before the King Commission probing match-fixing and betting in cricket in South Africa, Mr Cassim, who is of Indian origin, said “during the meeting, Mr Chawla handed over an envelope containing money to Cronje who put it into his pocket.”

He said although he had not concentrated on the conversation between Mr Chawla and Cronje, he had heard the bookmaker telling the former South African captain “keep this and we’ll talk about it later.”

“I was a bit surprised that Hansie took the envelope,” Mr Cassim said, adding Mr Chawla and Cronje had discussed about pitches, match forecasting, scores and team selection.

Village crosses over to PoK
Army blames it on ISI

JAMMU, June 26 (PTI) — Over 280 persons, most of them Bakerwals (nomads), migrated to Pakistan-occupied-Kashmir (PoK) from the Mendhar area of Poonch sector last night, a senior defence official said here today.

The entire village comprising 282 persons, including men, women and children, crossed over to PoK from Tarkundi village (Mendhar) along the Line of Control (LoC) last night, Maj Gen Staff (MGGS), military operations, P.P.S. Bhindra told PTI on phone from Nagrota today.

“The village is totally deserted as these people have shifted along with their cattleheads and household gadgets to PoK”, he said, adding the migration was prompted by warnings by public address systems fitted to mosques on the other sides of LoC.

Terming this as a “serious” development, he said that during the last few days Pakistan’s ISI agents were motivating the people to cross over to their side on offers of money and houses.

“Jang honay ja raha hai, tum log khatam ho jao ghay” (war will soon break out, you will be destroyed). Come to this side, you will be safe,” blared the loudspeakers from mosques in PoK, Major General Bhindra said.

Tarkundi is among the 14 hamlets which are divided by LoC. One side of these village falls in PoK and the other in India, he said. Tarkundi and 13 other villages are situated in the forefront of Indian defence positions.

Senior Army officials and civilian authorities have rushed to village to take stock of the situation following mass migration.

Meanwhile, an AFP report from Islamabad quoting Pakistan’s military regime spokesman Major Gen Rashid Qureshi said that some 300 refugees have crossed into PoK.

He said it was unclear what provoked the exodus.

“It started the day before yesterday and initially we thought it was just a few families,” he told AFP, adding that they began arriving around the town of Kotli.

“But then it increased to 160 persons yesterday and now there’s about 300 and it is continuing to build”, the AFP report said.