M A I N   N E W S

What did Chandrachud really do?
Conflicting reports on match-fixing
From R. Suryamurthy and
S. Satyanarayanan
Tribune News Service

NEW DELHI, Nov 3—The submissions made by the cricketers before the two inquires on match-fixing and betting—the Justice Chandrachud Commission and the CBI probe—bring to the fore startling ommissions and an inconsistent approach, much like the results of the glorious game of uncertainty— cricket.

A comparative study of the statements made by the key Indian players exposed their double standards, raising questions about their integrity towards the gentleman’s game.

While the two reports have given diametrically opposite views on the involvement of cricketers in match-fixing and betting, the fans of this game, who view the players as icons, still wonder whether the worst is over or it is only the tip of the iceberg.

The former Supreme Court Judge Y.V. Chandrachud, was asked by the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) on June 20, 1997,to inquire into the match-fixing and betting allegations raised by the former all-rounder Manoj Prabhakar. He submitted the report on November 17, 1997.

On the other hand, the Union Sport Minister, Mr Sukhdev Singh Dhindsa, asked the country’s premier investigating agency, the CBI, to probe the entire gamut of match-fixing and betting. The agency began the probe on May 2 this year and submitted the report on November 1.

While the former Indian captain, Mohammed Azharuddin, categorically denied match-fixing in cricket before the Justice Chandrachud Commission, the Hyderabad cricketer admitted before the CBI to having taken money on some occasions to fix matches/under-perform.

The middle-order batsman who created history by scoring three consecutive centuries on debut, told the Chandrachud Commission ,“I do not think that any match can be fixed. It has taken me 14 long years to build up some reputation as a player. I cannot think of destroying it by playing badly with a deliberate motive.”

“It is true that I dress well. I also like to live in a good style. I have a house in Hyderabad and a flat in Bombay. My accounts are quite clear. The tax authorities are the best judges of that.”

“I do not know if there is betting on cricket. But I know this for certain that none of my team-mates bet.”

In a virtual volte face, the former Indian captain told the CBI that “the Titan Cup match between India and South Africa at Rajkot in 1996 was fixed through Mukesh Gupta (a bookie) and Ajay Jadeja and Nayan Mongia were also involved.”

“Former Delhi captain Ajay Sharma and Mukesh Gupta had been approaching me to under-perform in some matches for some consideration.

Azhar, however, told the CBI he had taken money on some occasions from MK but did not “under-perform” in most of the matches in which he had taken money.

The physiotherapist for the team for nearly a decade beginning 1987, Dr Ail Irani, had told the BCCI- appointed commission that “It is impossible that any of the Indian matches can be fixed or any of our players can be got at. There is just no possibility of only one player in the Indian team influencing another player or other players.”

“It is worthwhile inquiring into as to how much amount can possibly be paid to a player for purchasing him to play badly. Today, the players get Rs 90,000 for playing one-day matches and Rs 1.25 lakh for playing a test. You have to pay bribes according to the worth and status of the bribe taker.

The players make Rs 38 to 40 lakh per year. How much can you then pay them? Rahul Dravid has a contract of Rs 50 lakh with Pepsi but such contract can be entered into and maintained as long as you are in the team.”

“The outburst of Manoj Prabhakar is unfounded. He is, by and large, a friendless person.”

However, Dr Irani told the investigating agency that “he had absolutely no doubt about the involvement of Ajay Jadeja with Azhar. He thought that Ajay Jadeja, Nayan Mongia and Manoj Prabhakar were also involved with Azhar in this (match-fixing) matter.”

Dr Irani said ,“The bookies normally approached the players individually and that often two players would not even realise that they had been approached by the same bookie.”

He said, "If one studied the body language of the players after a match, then, at times, one could realise that a particular player was involved in match-fixing.”

“There have been occasions even when the Indian team had won, some players were not happy after the match. In fact, in a match against Pakistan during the ‘Independence Cup’, the Indian team had won, but when the camera focussed on Azhar, he did not appear happy. Noticing this, the camera focussed on him for a considerable time,” he said.

Based on the kind of evidence that was available, the two inquiries arrived at different conclusions.

The Chandrachud Commission in its 94-page report concluded that “there is, undoubtedly, large-scale betting on cricket, but that is a law and order problem. Betting, like drinking, is a common human weakness since the beginning of the world. There are copious reference to the world. One cannot, therefore, rule out the possibility that some Indian players may be laying the flutter of a bet. But, it is less than just to conclude they lay bets for losing a match. Such a charge lacks substance and is unjustified.”

The 162-page CBI report, on the other hand, indicted five Indian players— Azharuddin, Ajay Jadeja, Ajay Sharma, Nayan Mongia and Manoj Prabhakar—and the former team physiotherapist ,Dr Ali Irani, for match-fixing and betting.

“There are clear signals that the underworld mafia has started taking interest in the betting racket and can be expected to take overall control of this activity if not checked immediately with a firm hand,” the CBI report said.

“With large amounts of money at stake in the betting racket in cricket, it makes sense for both bookies and punters to manipulate results of cricket matches. This has resulted in their developing a close and unholy relationship with cricketers,” it said.

Both inducement and threats to players are bound to increase in view of the big money involved in gambling on cricket and the entry of the underworld. Major corrective steps needed to be taken to put cricket back on the rails, the CBI cautioned.

Will the International Cricket Council and boards of different countries act now or let the game become a gambling den of the underworld?