A former Indian Premier League and Ranji Trophy player has alleged that he was offered Rs 40 lakh for match-fixing, and a complaint has been filed with the Bengaluru Police in this regard.
Rajagopal Sathish hails from Tamil Nadu and apart from his home country has also played for Assam in the country’s premier premier competition. He has been on the roster of Punjab Kings XI, Mumbai Indians and Kolkata Knight Riders in the IPL. He also played in the unauthorized Indian Cricket League and returned to the official fold after the general amnesty. The 41-year-old now plays for Chepauk Super Gillies in the Tamil Nadu Premier League (TNPL) and Sathish is believed to have been offered cash to jeopardize games in this tournament.
Before approaching the police, Sathish had also raised the matter with the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI). The International Cricket Council (ICC) has also been informed.
A police official said the formal complaint was filed after instructions from the BCCI. “A task force has been formed and we suspect the accused, who claimed to be Bunny Anand, is in Bengaluru,” the official said.
As the BCCI Anti-Corruption and Security Unit (ACSU) does not have investigative, search and seizure powers, it relies on the police in all cases related to match-fixing, spot-fixing or any other form of corruption in cricket.
The police complaint was made by B Lokesh, who is part of ACSU, at Jayanagar Police Station in Bengaluru, the official said. According to him, “On January 3, a person named Bunny Anand contacted Sathish on Instagram and messaged him urging him to pay Rs 40 lakh and told him that two players had already accepted the offer. Sathish said that he said ‘sorry’ about the offer.”
ACSU chief Shabbir Khandwawala confirmed that the matter was now in the hands of the police.
“The player approached us and ICC, and informed us that someone had approached him on Instagram. We took down the details of the case and told our ACU officer to file a complaint. complaint to the police about it. We are just a facilitator and now the police will look into the matter,” Khandwawala said.
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