Justice Chandrachud Committee Report (Part 1)
On 20th June 1997, the following references were made to me by the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) under the signature of Shri
22-Apr-2000
On 20th June 1997, the following references were made to me by
the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) under the
signature of Shri. Raj Singh Dungarpur, the President of BCCI.
The references reads as follows:-
1. "The Board of Control For Cricket in India ("BCCI") is
primarily responsible for selecting the Indian team for playing
official cricket matches under the auspices of the International
Cricket Council ("ICC"). BCCI is non-profit autonomous body, its
objects and functions being regulated by its Memorandum and
Regulations.
2. In recent past, serious charges have been leveled against
members of the Indian team for betting and for match-fixations of
international cricket between the Indian team selected by the
BCCI and teams of other countries.
3. In a cover story which was published in The Outlook magazine
in its issue dated 11th June I997, Shri. Manoj Prabhakar, an
international cricketer of repute, is reported to have made the
following allegations:-
(i) I was approached by certain quarters to perform below par in
certain matches.
(ii) Before the India-Pakistan match in Sri-Lanka for the Singer
Cup in 1994, I was offered Rs. 25 lakhs by an Indian team member
for sabotaging the match in Pakistan's favour. I was told to play
below my usual standard.
(iii) There are times that things are so obvious, the entire
nation has watched it happen . In Kanpur, when we were chasing
West Indies score, Mongia came into bat and conveyed the
management instructions to get as close to the target. The
resultant hullabaloo about my going slow should be directed at
the team management and not me as I was doing so under their
instructions.
4. In the said cover story in Outlook magazine, the writer Shri
Aniruddha Bahal, has alleged, inter-alia, that a senior Mumbai
police officer who has represented Bombay University in Cricket
has categorically stated that he has records to prove and is
prepared to present the evidence if BCCI sets up a probe panel to
substantiate the alleged claim that during the 1994-95 tour of
New Zealand, two Indian players made arrangements with one
identified bookie (who can be produced as a witness) for fixing
the match played against New Zealand.
Shri. Bahal also named few officials of BCCI as well as
journalists who were allegedly aware of and/or involved in "the
betting racket." Shri Bahal has alleged that "there is betting in
cricket. and India loses matches".
5. In response to a letter dated 6th June 1997 written by BCCI,
Shri Prabhakar reiterated by his reply dated 16th June 1997 that
the contents of the said article printed, published and
circulated in Outlook magazine in its issue dated 11th June 1997
are correct and alleged that he "had informed the concerned
persons and had been told that he should play his game and that
they would do the needful".
Shri Prabhakar however, refused to provide any particulars or the
names on the ground that "no useful purpose would be
served..especially because it would be virtually impossible for
me to prove the incident that had occurred". Shri Prabhakar has
been quoted by the newspaper as having said: "If I could ever
reveal all that I have gone through and seen, you would see that
in this hamam(bathroom) of Indian cricket almost everyone is
naked".
6. In yet another publication in The Pioneer published on 19th
April 1997, its Sports Editor, Shri Pradeep Magazine, has alleged
that "he was offered Rs. 40 lakhs by a Delhi bookie to fix
matches" played between Indian and West Indies cricket teams in
the recently concluded series. Despite being requested by the
BCCI by its letter dated 3rd June 1997 to disclose the name of "
Delhi bookie", Shri Magazine did not divulge the name.
7. On 4th June 1997, Shri Ajit Wadekar, a former Indian captain
and Manager of the Indian Cricket team, while reacting to the
allegations made by Shri Manoj Prabhakar in the news magazine
Outlook, claimed, inter alia, to have tapped the telephone
conversations of Indian players for a month or so after the
Indian team's return from the South African tour, for finding out
whether there was anything incriminating or objectionable which
would have led to such a false allegation. The fax message sent
by Sri Ajit Wadekar to the Indian Express and carried all over
India, was reproduced by Shri Joy Chakravarty, the Reporter. Shri
Ajit Wadekar denied subsequently of having "tapped" the
telephones of Indian cricketers. In response to the letter issued
by BCCI to Shri Jit Wadekar on 6th June 1997, Shri Wadekar
forwarded a Xerox copy of the fax, but while comparing the said
Xerox copy with the Xerox of the fax that has been printed and
published by the Indian Express, Mumbai edition, on the 10th June
1997, glaring discrepancies were noticed.
8. Considering that the aforesaid allegations of "betting" and
"match-fixing" by Indian cricketers and/or by management are
calculated to cause grave prejudice to the future of Indian
cricket and damage its image and the image of the country, BCCI
considered it expedient to have a thorough enquiry made into the
said allegations.
9. In the circumstances and for reasons aforesaid, the President
of the BCCI has constituted a one-man committee of Mr.
Y.V.Chandrachud, Former Chief Justice of India, to hold an
enquiry into the alleged charges with liberty to call for the
record of the board such as he considers relevant, and to call
for the evidence of the Board officials or members, team
officials, cricketers and journalists as he may deem fit and
necessary. Mr. Chandrachud is requested to submit his report with
particular reference to the following:-
(a) Whether the allegations made by Shri Manoj Prabhakar as
published in Outlook in its issue dated 11th June 1997 are true;
(b) Whether any cricketer, BCCI officials or team officials are
in any manner involved in "betting" or "match-fixing" as alleged
in the said article published in The Outlook;
( c) Whether any journalists or any other persons are involved in
the "betting" or "match-fixing" as alleged in the said article
published in The Outlook or as alleged in the article published
in The Pioneer in its issue dated 19th April 1997; and
(d) Whether Shri Ajit Wadekar put "tap" on the telephones on
Indian cricketers after their return from the South African tour
and, if so, whether such tapping is permissible in law; and
(e) Whether the reports of bribing the Indian cricketers and of
match-fixation which are alleged to be in wide circulation have
any foundation in truth:
10. Mr. Chandrachud may inquire into any other relevant or
incidental matters arising out of the aforesaid allegations and
reports.
11. Mr. Chandrachud will be provided with secretarial assistance
and other facilities to enable him to conduct the enquiry
officiously.
12. Mr. Chandrachud has conveyed that he will not accept any fees
or honorarium in any form for conducting the enquiry.
13. Shri U.N. Banerjee, Legal Advisor to BCCI, is nominated on
behalf of the Board to assist Mr. Chandrachud in the conduct of
the enquiry.
14. Mr. Chandrachud is expected to submit his report as
expeditiously as possible.
2. During the course of my inquiry, I interviewed past and
present members of the Indian cricket team. managers of the team,
physiotherapists of the team and certain journalists. I took down
in my own hand the statements made before me by the players, the
managers, the Physiotherapist, and two journalists -- Mr. Krishna
Prasad and Mr. Makarand Waigankar. The statements of the others,
mostly journalists, were dictated by me in their presence to my
personal secretary who typed them out in their presence. A few of
them, just a few suggested minor changes in what I had dictated.
Those changes were forthwith incorporated in their statements.
I have divided my report into two parts: Part I consists of the
statements of the person interviewed by me or to whom I talked
and a list of reports of managers or coaches of the Team, which I
perused. Part II contains my findings.
Part I
A. Sachin Tendulkar:
I do not believe that the matches are fixed or can be fixed.
While playing the game of cricket, you never know what is in
store for you, as you know in an examination when you have read
your books and answer the questions. There is no prescribed
syllabus in a sport. There are surprises galore. Within my
knowledge, no matches have ever been fixed. I never got the
feeling that any of my teammates deliberately played a bad shot
to get out. Speaking of me I am so made that I decide to take an
occasional risk which works most of the times but fails
occasionally. A batsman, who can deliberately get out, would need
to be a super technician. He will use his expertise for playing
well rather than forgetting out. We now make such handsome money
merely by playing for the country, that it would be suicidal for
any player to play badly deliberately. For example, between May
1996 and May 1997 we played 15 International matches for which,
each of us received a sum of rupees forty lakhs from BCCI. I feel
it is impossible to believe that any player would risk being
dropped out of the team for deliberate bad play and lose not only
the honour of playing for his country but the opportunity to earn
so much money by lawful means.
The statements made by Manoj Prabhakar have no foundation. He has
made a specific allegation that in the Indo-Pak match which was
played in Sri Lanka in the Singer Cup Series in 1994, a teammate
had offered him Rs.25 lakhs to play badly. If Manoj had the
courage to say this, he should have had the courage to name the
player.
B. Mohammed Azharuddin:
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 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 in cricket, but I know
this for certain that none of my teammates bets.
C. Nayan Mongia:
Matches are not fixed at all. I have been playing Test cricket
since November-December 1993. I came to know about the expression
"Fixing of matches" from newspapers only. As a member of the
Indian team, I have never experienced it. The truth is that we
are playing so much cricket these days that there are more ups
and downs in individual performance now than before. In 1996-97,
we played 30-35 one-dayers and 11-12 test matches. We were away
from home for about 5 months.
I think it crazy that any player will bet to lose. I have never
heard even a whisper of it from any teammate. We spend years and
years to train ourselves and are lucky to be selected in the
national team. Then to think that we will bet to lose makes no
sense. Thereby, we will ruin and sacrifice all that we have
achieved.
We earn about rupees forty lakhs an year, officially from the
BCCI. In addition we make quite some money in other lawful ways
as in advertisements. There is no need to look beyond it. The
team meets very often, we are together for long hours, we discuss
our strategy but, never is there even a whisper of fixing a match
or of betting.
D. Ajay Jadeja
Fixing a match requires a great amount of homogeneity which is
not to be found in a pronounced manner in our team. The team is
composed of players from different parts of India and they have
not much in common between them. It is not as if we are not
friendly to each other but we do not know each other so
intimately that on or two of us can take other players into
confidence and fix a match. People watch the game of cricket for
the thrill of its uncertainty. It is ironical that whoever does
not do well is presumed to be bought over and it is as if the
match is played by the bookies and not by us.
When you are included in the test team, you think only of your
performance and not of money. Cricket is a religion in India and
if the numerous spectators even suspect that a player takes bribe
to play badly, they will boycott him and destroy his family
socially.
A match can be fixed by getting at the star players in the team
but even tail-enders have turned the fortunes of a game as
happened in the match which was played on 10th October 1997
between Pak and South Africa.
Some figures are interesting. A great player like Gavaskar who
scored 130 centuries in first class matches was out for a duck on
20 occasions. In his last match, Gavaskar needed only 4 runs to
bid farewell with a century but he was out for 96. That is
exactly what happened to Sir Don Bradman, the greatest of us all.
I believe that people bet on Cricket. But a player can make far
more money by playing well and winning a match than by playing
badly and loosing a match. In fact, if a player has some class he
will bet to win so that he wins the bet and makes additional
money because of his performance. Our style of living has changed
significantly which leads to various guesses and allegations.
People think that we must be making money by illegal ways since
we live so well. They do not know that the tax people will not
allow it to go unnoticed and that, we are paid handsomely as
members of the team.
I do not think that in today's Indian team, there is any player
who bets on the game. It is true that at one time friends used to
have access to the player's enclosure and sometimes they used to
speak on mobile phones. Now mobiles are not allowed after we
leave our hotel. No friends are allowed in the player's
enclosure, much less in the dressing room. The dressing room is
an exclusive place meant for the use of players.
E. Sunil Gavaskar:
I was shocked, surprised and saddened to know of the allegation
that some of our players are involved in betting on the game. I
think that it is impossible to fix a match. In my fairly long
experience, which has, fortunately, not ended with my retirement
from the game, I have never known that any match was fixed. You
cannot fix a match by buying over a couple of players. The fifth
wicket partnership of Azhar and Jadeja of about 230 runs in the
one day match at Sri Lanka was a fantastic performance.
Some people are firing shots in a dark room to hit someone. But
there is no one in the room. So the shots only damage the room.
That room is Indian cricket. To-day, it is a dark room because we
are not in a winning streak. When we win, there are lights here,
lights there and lights everywhre. I feel that the reason for the
allegations of betting and match fixing are being made today
because we are not good enough to win at the present moment for
whatever reason. Any way,if Manoj Prabhakar had a story up his
sleeve, he could have approached his captain, vice-captain, coach
or team manager which he never did. I do not believe his story.
F.Kapil Dev:
In my entire career as a player, I was never approached by anyone
for match fixing. I guess that there is large betting on cricket
but, the evil of betting can be dealt with only by the police.
Today there is so much cricket that there is so much betting
also. Those who lose their bets are the first to blame the
players for playing bad deliberately.
Fixing a match does not mean fixing all the players in the team.
It is possible to approach a couple of star players and fix a
match. A player can be approached only for playing badly because
not even a Don Bradman or a Sunil Gavaskar could claim that he
will score a century. A player can only promise that he will get
out cheaply. But in my experience no match was fixed.
Many people try to get friendly with players to increase their
own importance. They are the ones who circulate all kinds of
stories. But it cannot be denied that they offer gifts to
players. They also try to get information from the players on the
basis of which, I guess, they may be laying bets. If they win,
they would go back to the player and offer a gift saying that
they have won a bet because of the information given to them.
I am of the opinion that the Board should set up a private agency
to find out the assets of players. That will give some clue
whether players lay bets or agree to fix matches.
G. Ajit Wadekar:
During my long term as a manager and even a longer term as a test
player, I never suspected that any player was involved in
betting. But, as a manager, I felt that the priorities of the
players were all wrong. They attended too many parties and mixed
with too many outsiders just to keep their own allowance intact.
Their attention is not all focussed on the game of cricket. I
therefore framed a code of conduct regarding dress, net practice,
general discipline and the need to hold discussions. Thereafter,
in England, we won 14 out of 21 matches, three were drawn and
only 4 were lost during my managership. While I was a captain, we
won 3 out of 4 series. At one stage, I wanted to relax the Code
but the players themselves said no to it. They said the code is
excellent and it works.
There is no betting by any Indian cricketer. It is out of
question. They are so well paid that they do not need any more
money.
Pass holders are not allowed to enter the players enclosure and
certainly not the dressing room. Five passes are given to each
player.The pass holder sits in a separate enclosure which is
quite away from the players enclosure. Even the wives of players
do not generally sit in the players' enclosure. It is untrue that
passes are sold. Many times Kapil Dev and I have purchased
tickets with our own money and have given them to friends as if
they were free passes.
The episode of offer of Rs 25 lakhs narrated by Manoj Prabhakar
has no foundation. In fact, I was the manager of the team at that
time. But he did not tell me a word about it. Besides, it was
raining for three days before the match and the match was never
played. Even the replay was washed out.
These days players make a lot of money. People are probably not
aware that Azhar has a contract of Rs 50 lakh with Pepsi. Sachin
has a contract running into crores with WorldTel, Kumble has a
contract of Rs 20 lakh, Siddhu has a contract of Rs 20 lakhs,
Rahul Dravid has a contract of Rs 30 lakhs for the stickers of
bills on his bat and so on. I believe that Azhar also has a
contract with Reebok for Rs 40 lakhs. According to me, Azhar is
basically a simple person but he is friendless. Some undesirable
persons have invaded the cricket field and have ruined it by
playing politics.
Regarding the tapping of phones by me, the original facts
contained the word "tap" through mistake. I asked my secretary to
correct it but he overlooked it and sent the fax.I did not tap
the telephone of any player. Anyone with some common sense will
agree that tapping the phones of 11 players is just impossible.
Finally, I would like to say that though the memebers of Indian
team are not unfriendly to each other, very few of them are close
and intimate. Differences in language, culture and food habits
make the Indian team not easy to manage. Team with such diverse
attitudes cannot be fixed by anyone.
H. Dilip Vengsarkar:
I had never heard of the word match fixing when I was in the
team. It was a matter of great pride and honour for me to play
for my country. You always played to win. I played actively from
1976 to 1992.
Knowing the Indian team it seems to me impossible that any of our
players cannot be purchased to perform badly.The achievement of
scoring the large number of runs in a representative match has no
substitute. I believe that you cannot fix a match unless you get
at least five or six players in your trap. Even two or three good
players cannot fix the match. People may have forgotten that
Srinath and Kumble won for India the Titan cup against Australia
by playing thrillingly as tailenders.The umpires play a large
part in the fortune of the game. I believe that for fixing a
match even the umpire may have to be fixed. What people must not
forget is that even the best of players go through a lean patch.
I. Sanjay Manjrekar:
I do not have any first hand knowledge about betting on cricket
matches. It is only during the last four years that I have heard
stories about betting on cricket. But even then I never heard any
stories about betting from teammates. As a member of the team I
never even suspected that there was betting on cricket or any of
my teammates was involved in it. My test career began in 1987.
As regards to match fixation cricket is a team game of all 11
players. It is not possible to influence all of the 11 players
through one or two players bribing them. Even one failure for a
batsman like me, with lakhs of people watching the game means
much more, then getting out delberately on payment of a bribe.
The statements made by Manoj Prabhakar are wholly untrue. In
fact, they are contrary to facts which are known to everyone. Our
match at Sharjah aganst Pakistan in October 1991 started late. We
were on the right path when the umpire said that the light was
bad. There was a brief stoppage. But it is untrue that Manoj
Prabhakar and I went to the pavilion. Ashok Mankad was the
manager of the team.
It is well known that matches have been won by tailenders often
times. Chetan Sharma won the game for us by scoring a century in
the MRF World Series at Kanpur. That makes match fixing difficult
to believe.
J. Ashok Mankad:
It seems to me certain that there is betting on cricket. However,
I am not aware of any cricketer past or present being involved in
betting. I was a manager of the team twice-first in 1986 and then
in 1991. I retired from my test career in 1978. In my opinion no
cricketer worth his salt will entertain the thought of selling
himself at the cost of his country's honour. The price of the
Indian Test-cap cannot be measured in terms of money because, it
is bought with tears and sweat. My father, Vinoo Mankad, who was
one of the great players of his times, used to say that the grass
on the cricket field is grown with the sweat of the cricketers.
The statements made by Manoj Prabhakar are wholly untrue and
unfounded. He should not be afraid of disclosing the names of his
team-mates who offered the bribe to him. He has defamed the
entire cricket fraternity and has devalued the national character
by his unwarranted remarks. The Sharjah match of which he speaks
did not take place at all. Besides, it was an inconsequential
match since India had reached the final. Cricket is a game of
glorious uncertainties. That is why the whole world watches it
with suspense and excitement. If a batsman score a century every
time and the bowler took a wicket in every over, the game will
cease to be interesting.
K. Chandu Borde:
I captained the Indian team in Adelaide in 1968. I was the
manager of the team which toured Pakistan in 1989. I was Chairman
of the Selection Committee for seniors for 4 years and for
juniors for 4 years. I was the vice-captain of the team and have
toured all cricket-playing countries as a player.
Though I retired a long time back from first class cricket, I am
still in touch with the game. I take active interest in the game,
meet many players, old and new, and exchange thoughts with them.
Not one person has ever told me that any member of the cricket
team takes a bribe to play badly. No one has ever told me that
Indian matches are fixed. I follow the game closely even today
and my experience belies the story that any cricket match is
fixed. The story of Manoj Prabhakar seems to me impossible to
believe.
L. Sandeep Patil:
I played as a member of the Indian team from 1979 to 1986. I was
a cricket coach for the Indian team from 18th March 1986 to Sept.
1996. Our team played in Singapore for six days, for one week at
Sharjah, for 70 days in England, for 10 days in Sri Lanka and for
10 days in Toronto. I assisted Ajit Wadekar in Nov. 1995 with the
New Zealand home series and I was coordinator during the World
Cup series, which ended on 17th March 1996.
I have seen one of the leading players in the Indian team talking
on the mobile phone right through the tour for long periods like
20 minutes from the balcony of the Lords dressing room. I wrote
to the board that players should not be allowed to take mobile
phones with them once they leave the hotel. My suggestion was
readily accepted. I had also complained to Mr. Jagmohan Dalmia
that I suspected two persons, one of them a player and other
closely connected with him, were leaking important information to
the press. I was also unable to understand why Dr. Ali Irani was
allowed to attend the team meetings on the eve of the match or at
any time.
I have experienced that the press knew the composition of the
team before the team was officially declared.
There can be betting on cricket on the basis of information
leaked to the bookies. But, my long experience shows that no
Indian player has ever laid a bet to loose a match. It has never
happened and I am sure that it'll never happen in the future.
People are given to talk loosely. Such rumours began to rise with
the introduction of the mobile phones and with at least one of
the key players talking on the mobile from the balcony of the
dressing room. Those who saw that drew the inference that the
player concerned was talking to some suspicious characters. Such
an inference is natural but I do not think that the inference is
justified. I repeat that no Indian player will ever bet to loose
a match. As the present editor of a fortnightly called 'Shatkar',
I am still in very close touch with the game. On the basis of my
experience I reject the allegation of match fixing.
M. Dr.D V Subba Rao
I was the manager of the Indian team, which toured West Indies
from Feb-May 1997.
Cricket is a game of uncertainty. Situation of sudden collapse of
a team arises quite often. In a one-day match in West Indies, we
had a target of 267 runs to achieve. We were 230 for three
wickets down. We lost 7 wickets for thirty runs and lost the
match by 16 runs. In the Barbados test, we wanted 121 runs to win
but we were all out for 80 runs. All the players uniformly
complained that the wicket was too bad to play.
Players do have many visitors but never in the dressing rooms and
generally not in the players enclosure. Occasionally a very
personal friend of a player sits in the player's enclosure. I
have not seen such persons speaking on mobile or looking very
informed.
My experience bellies the allegation of match fixing in Indian
cricket. You have to take at least two key batsmen and two key
bowlers in confidence to bet to loose a match. Players are on
friendly terms with each other. But I have never seen any
intimacy between them, which could enable them to conspire to
obtain a particular result. They share accommodation but the
players rotate and the same players will not share one room all
through the tour.
The talk of match fixing and betting started when we began to
loose matches. When we were on a winning streak, there was no
such talk. The emergence of a brilliant young player like
Jayasurya caused our defeat in many games and with it the talk of
match fixing started. It is difficult to contain a batsman like
Jayasurya. In fact, in respect of our own great opener K
Srikkanth, Allan Border had said, "Bowl anywhere you like. He
will hit you anywhere he likes." Unfortunately at this moment,
the Indian team is not adequately equipped to perform well. We
have no Lala Amarnath, Vinoo Mankad, Chandu Borde, Bapu
Nathkarni, Saleem Durani or Eknath Solkar. Our players are very
young and seem to be playing with the fear that if the fail they
will be out. I find that the team lacks a sense of commitment,
which is necessary for winning matches. From the Prudential cup
1983 to 1987-'88, we were in the winning streak under Kapil Dev.
No one talked of match fixing then. I do not believe that there
is any match fixing in Indian cricket or any Indian player bets
to loose a match.
N. Dr.Ali Irani
I have been working as a physiotherapist with the Indian team
since 1987, when the Reliance World Cup was played. The only
occasions when I did not go with the team as a physiotherapist
were to West Indies and Pakistan in 1989 and to New Zealand at
about the same time. 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 one player in the Indian team
influencing another player or other players. When the Indian team
won the series against England, West Indies and Sri Lanka between
1993-'94 people started saying that West Indies took money and
lost matches. People are generally prone to forming opinions
after hearing the TV commentary. That is why they talk the same
way. If the TV were made mute, very few people will be able to
say or write any thing original. Cricket is not a sport but a
religion.
Sachin Tendulkar cannot accept defeat. He takes his cricket as
one takes to religion and he is the right person to lead the
team.
Psychologically, people are compulsive gamblers. There are some
who consult an astrologer on such piffling things as the number
of nails on shoes, the colour of the pants or the size of a neckchain.
It is worth while inquiring 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
lakhs for playing a test. You have to pay bribes according to the
worth and the status of the bribe-taker. The players make 38 to
40 lakhs or rupees per year. How much can you the pay them? Rahul
Dravid has a contract of Rs.50 lakhs with Pepsi but such
contracts can be entered in to 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.
N. Manoj Prabhakar
My story is true. I did not speak out for three years because i
wanted to play cricket. It is not correct that i have made up my
story because i was put out of the team. I was thrown out of the
team because i was not treated well.
In England and Australia betting is legalised. Even players can
bet but they cannot bet to lose. They blame cricketers for
deliberately playing badly.
I cannot disclose the name of teammates or of any other person
involved in offering the bribe to me for losing the game because
if I do so, my life will be in danger. I was given a threat to
that effect by persons who offered me a bribe. I am also afraid
that I will be sued or persecuted for defamation if I disclose
the names. I have no evidence to prove my statements.There will
be my word against their word.The prosecution or the suit will
ruin me totally.These are the reasons why, initially, I did not
speak out for three years and now I cannot disclose their names
of the culprits.
Justice Chandrachud's interpolation: (O) While I was in Delhi on
19th August 1997 for my personal work I interviewed Shri Sunil
Dev who was a secretary of Delhi District Cricket Association for
2 years and has been elected for the third term consecutively. He
was a vice president of BCCI for 4 years and from 18 Dec 1996 to
21st Feb 1997, he was the manger of the Indian team on South
African tour).
P. Mr Sunil Dev:
Betting on cricket takes place heavily in India. It is in place
for about 10 years. It has assumed large proportion since the
introduction of oneday games. There is heavier betting on one
day matches because they are result oriented. I cannot identify
any particular player who bets on cricket but I am fairly certain
that members of the team do lay a bet and one can only bet to
lose. Its easy to get run out or hit a lofted shot. Coaches can
detect a deliberate under performance and so can students of the
game. We may have lost some matches because some of our players
laid bets to lose.
Matches can be and are fixed but they can be fixed only for
loosing not for winning. No one can fix a match for winning it.
From Sept 1996 to Sept 1997, each of the 14 players of the team
including the coach must have earned over Rs 50 lakhs which
consists only of what the board pays them. When the team goes
abroad they get a daily allowance of 50 USD per day. They do not
spend that money. They have a large number of fans, some of whom
are highly placed and invite them for dinners but, I can say that
the Indian team is a very disciplined, wellbehaved lot of
players , most of whom live within their means.
The Board cannot do anything about disproportionate assets of the
players. But I have a feeling that one or two players have
acquired disproportionate assets. Out of the logo money, the
board keeps 40 per cent and distributes 60 per cent equally among
the players. Manoj Prabhakar wanted more money to be paid to the
senior members of the team. He was dropped not only from the
Indian team but he was not even included in his home Delhi team.
The story which he gave to Outlook is not true .It only shows his
deep sense of frustration.
(R) Mr Makrand Waingankar:
I am the sports correspondent of Sanj Loksatta. In 1993, I
covered the test match between India and England. Anyone could
enter the dressing room and I saw some shady characters hovering
around the dressing room. One of such persons is alleged to have
been arrested under TADA. It's wrong to allow access to any
person to the dressing room.
The statements made by Manoj Prabhakar in Outlook magazine are
false. I have been a close follower of cricket since 1965 but I
cannot think of any match which was fixed.
I am of the opinion that the fees paid to the players should be
linked with the performance as in Sri Lanka. If that is done
there would be no possibility of a match being fixed.
The statements made by the other journalists read thus:
a. Mr Aniruddha Bahal, Outlook's principal correspondent.
A cricket match can be fixed. The results of the international
matches are in the present times so close that it is enough to
fix a few key players. It is not necessary to fix all the 11
players. The match can be fixed not merely by bookies even
punters can fix a match. Corruption is a matter of individual
susceptibility. A player who has scored a half century has
performed well for outward purposes but he may have scored those
runs in twice the number of balls when his potential is that he
can score 50 runs in 60 balls. Thus, it is difficult to find
fault with him by saying that he was involved with any bookie or
punter. Many permutations and combinations are involved in good
and bad play, that is, a bowler can bowl a few overs very well
and then slide off, similarly, the batsman or the wicketkeeper.
It is true that the report in our magazine Outlook regarding the
match, of which Mr Prabhakar has spoken, never took place. Even
the adjourned match whichwas to be replayed did not take place.
That does not mean that Prabhakar's story is baseless.The reason
is that bets would be laid or the money can be offered when it
was not known or anticipated that the match will not be played.
There is a huge amount of betting in the sub continent. In my
opinion, there is a lot of betting on cricket in India. Indian
players may also be laying bets which does not necessarily mean
that they have laid those bets for fixing the match. But, if a
player lays a bet, he would naturally adjust his play so that he
can win that bet. No one lays a bet to loose it. The fact that
Indian players earn a higher amount legally through the board
does not mean that they would not be interested in making more
money. Its not every good player who makes large money in
advertisements or in TV modelling. There are just one or two of
that kind. Therefore, the others could well be tempted to make
money which is a human trait.
Whatever I have to say on match fixation or the particular
matches which were fixed is stated in the article in our magazine
Outlook. What we could say openly has been stated by us. Things
which can not be published without good evidence have not been
published by us.
(Justice Chandrachud adds: Mr Bahal showed me a letter and a
note suggesting match fixing by Indian cricketers.The said letter
says that "Lots of bits and pieces of information" was received
but was not actionable. The letter says that "very peripheral
information" was received from " various sources". "If we had any
basis we would have looked for proof." The note speaks of a
letter by which information was handed over to a revenue
secretary, and the letter could be found of the record of the
revenue department. Paragraph 3 of the note says that the
gentleman with whom the writer had a talk could not remember the
names regarding the involvement of four players who alleged to
have been paid of before a match in Sharjah.)
My information tends to show that there is a company in Singapore
which organises the Singer Cricket tournament behind the scene
and that, an Indian board official was a beneficiary of the
proceedings along with three other persons who are closely linked
with cricket, one of whom is from Pakistan.
b. Mr Krishna Prasad, Outlook co-correspondent.
Cricket is a subject of my study. I have personal motive in
writing the article which appeared in Outlook. I do not say that
every international Indian cricket match is fixed. Only some
matches are fixed. Outlook has not made any insinuation against
any board official even when matches are fixed nor that every
cricketer is involved in match fixing. Though betting on cricket
is legalised in England and Australia and partly in Sri Lanka ,
it is frowned upon. It is considered improper to bet.
The board should ask for a declaration from the players of the
assets. That may perhaps be too generic. But, one does not know
why the board did not try to find whether the assets of some
players are wholly disproportionate to their known source of
income.
Manoj Prabhakar has brought in the forefront the virus which is
eating into the vitals of Indian cricket. Since March 1996,
Indian cricketers have been earning large amounts by way of fees.
Even then, the assets held by some players are staggering. It is
impossible to obtain and furnish proof in black and white of
illegal payments made to players. Those who make such payments
are highly placed individuals.
A tremendous amount of betting takes place in cricket. Dubai and
Karachi have the biggest cartels.
All types of queer characters sit in the players' box and have
access to the dressing room. Betting takes place not merely on
the final result of the match. There can be betting on the toss,
runs scored by a player, catches taken and dropped, the total
runs which the team scored and so on.
c. Mr. Lokendra Pratap Sahi, Sports Editor, The Telegraph
I think it is possible to fix an international cricket match
involving any team. If you watch the matches closely, you will
find that some matches take a cetain turn either with the fall of
one wicket or even after a couple of overs only. There are some
runouts which cannot be explained and 2-3 players are getting out
one after the another. Shots which they play are such as they
should not have been played in that situation. Some time you find
that some bowlers concede as many as 40-50 runs in three overs.
Thus the question arises as to why such a thing has happenned?
It is not fair to assume that all matches are fixed or that all
players in any particular match are fixed. It cannot be that
everyone in the team is fixed. It is the players who are crucial
to the side who can be fixed. Like an opening bowler, a key
player or even a wicket keeper. That possibility is always there.
When a match is fixed only one player is never fixed. It may be
2-3 crucial players who are fixed may get out. By getting out
they have done their job. That is say they have done whatever was
expected of them or asked of them. If the others pull out the
match and the side does well, that is bad luck for the bookies.
The bookies will not go for the fringe players in that case their
element of risk will increase. The bookies will always have the
key players as his target. That is what I believe.
I have been with Telegraph for 15 years. I am its Sports Editor
for past five years. I have toured with the Indian team about 20
times, There was a one-day match between India and West Indies,
at Kanpur in 1994. I did not cover that. I sent one of my
colleagues to cover it.
The way Manoj Prabhakar and Nayan Mongia batted shocked everyone.
The reports which appeared in the newspapers next day almost
unanimously doubted the integrity of these two players. That is
because, in one day match, they were batting as if they were
playing in a test match. That is the first time I thought that
there is some truth in the allegation that players are involved
with bookies. After that match, both Prabhakar and Mongia were
dropped out for the next two matches. That was obviously by way
of punishment. The general feeling was that their omission from
the next two matches had everything to do with their involvement
with the bookies.
In early 1995 I went to Sharjah. But before that there was a
tournament in New Zealand in which India took part. When the
Indian team returned the Indian Express carried a story on the
front page quoting the Manager of the Indian team which had
toured New Zealand, that the Indian team had six black sheep.
That story talked about matches being fixed. For two days after
the story, there was no comment from the board. On the third day
the manger issued the statement from Vishakapatnam saying that he
was misquoted by the paper and that he had not given any
information to the Indian Express. The story in the Indian
Express had quoted the manager. Since the story in the said paper
was not denied immediately by the board or the Mnager I think
that there must have been some truth in the report. It is a queer
coincidence that the Salim Malik episode occured almost at the
same time in which Shane Warne and two other Australian players
alleged that S. Malik had offered them a bribe to ensure that
Australia lose the match.
After the Kanpur and New Zealand incidents, the public started
feeling and became more convinced that there must be some
underhand dealing between the players and the bookies.
In 1996, India played in Sahara cup at Toronto. I did not cover
that tournament. Therefore, I cannot say what happened during
that tour. But I was told by some people in Calcutta after the
first match that the first four matches in Toronto were fixed,
that the result will be two all and that, the fifth match will be
played on merit. As a coincidence, that is exactly what happened.
For that, both the teams had to cooperate and some players in the
Pakistan team may also have cooperated.
Recently , in some matches, the performance of some members of
our team has been shocking and far below expectations. While on
circuit, I felt that some players were just not bothered in
respect of their own poor and overall failure of the team. It
seemed to me as if they were not bothered about it. The fat
allowance paid to the Indian players is a recent phenomenon for
the last 5-7 years. It is the key player who is targeted by the
bookies. He has no fear. Even if he performs poorly for 3-4
matches, he will still be in the team. Being dropped from the
team, is what can happen to a fringe player for bad performance
but, the bookies never target them. The bookies invest in a
player who will be in the team even after 3-4 bad performances.
Therefore, a key player does not have much stake in being
involved with the bookies for some time at least. After 3-4 bad
performances, he may do extremely well and again become a hero
before the public. Public memory is very short and if a key
player makes a century or takes some wickets, his immediate past
poor performance is forgotten by the public.
The bookies target players in important matches where betting
stakes are enormous as in matches with Pakistan, West Indies,
South Africa, Australia and now Sri Lanka. In key matches,
especially with Pakistan, the betting can run into crores of
rupees. In England and South Africa, betting on cricket is
legalised. In England, there are Ladbroke stalls at all test
match centres where any one can bet openly. The odds are publicly
displayed on the board at those centres.
The Salim Malik incident took place in February 1995. Five months
later, in July 1995, the International Cricket Council, which is
the Governing body for cricket, outlawed betting and gambling in
the Code of Conduct which has to be followed by every player and
official. In fact, one clause was added to the code of Conduct.
Clause 9 of the ICC Code of Conduct was added in July 1995 which
provides, inter alia, that players and team officials shall not
engage, directly or indirectly in betting, gambling or any form
of unofficial speculation on the outcome of any cricket match.
I would like to emphasise that it is the key players who are
fixed and the key matches. There is no question of fixing a
fringe player nor can you fix all players. No bookie would be
interested in fixing a match which is unimportant. I am not
prepared to say that every player in the team is involved. All I
can say is that a couple of key players can be involved. What is
important is that a member of the Indian team may place a bet on
the result of the match, though he cannot do so because of Code
of Conduct. What is important and objectionable is the possible
involvement with the bookie and the deliberate poor performance.
A player in a team can supply more information to a bookie on the
composition of the team, an unpublished injury to a player, which
is only known to the team, or state of the wicket. Mobile phones
were banned in Pakistan in 1994-95 by the then Manager Inthikhab
Alam. The then Indian Manager, Sandeep Patil also banned mobile
phones in August 1996. The question naturally arises, why?
d.Bipin Dani, freelance journalist
I say that cricket matches can be fixed. There cannot be smoke
without fire. I believe that international Indian cricket matches
are fixed. Newspaper reports say that bookies have been arrested.
It cannot be false that they are not involved. The bookies will
not take bets unless they involve cricketers. Fixing up a match
means getting at a few good players. Each and every match cannot
be fixed. A match can be fixed by contacting key players. The key
players are asked to tell the other players to perform poorly. I
have no evidence in support of what I have stated. However, there
are some circumstances which support my statement.
Rashid Latif had said that four Indian cricketers used to inquire
with him on telephone about climatic prediction, wicket
condition, etc. Latif denied this allegation immediately. However
, he did not send his denial to the Outlook magazine but sent it
to Azaruddin.
e. R Mohan, The Hindu
I consider it impossible that an international match can be fixed
As many as 11 players are involved in the play and what is more
important the national prestige is at stake I have heard many
market rumours about match fixing . But during my 18 years as a
cricket correspondent with the Hindu I do not know a single
instance when I heard before the match or during the match that
some particular player or players are going to play badly. These
rumours, I found , are unfounded and they are circulated after
the match is over . A team which loses is accused to having fixed
the match to lose. I have no personal knowledge but, it is widely
believed that a large amount of betting takes place on cricket in
India. In some other countries, like England and Australia,
betting is legalised. Cricket is an unpredictable game because
fluctuations in the form of a player or a team are very common.
That is why unusual results are produced in any cricket match
between any two countries. Any cricket match can produced a
shocking result. When a shocking result is produced, rumours
begin to float.
The match with Pakistan in the Singer cup in 1994 at Colombo,
about which Manoj Prabhakar has spoken to Outlook, never took
place. In fact, it was raining for a quite few days before the
match was due to be played. One day cricket is even more
unpredictable than a test match. The nature of the game is such
that any side may win or lose. No one ever thought that Kenya
would beat West Indies in the World Cup Championship whch was
held in 1996.
Our match with West Indies in which we had to score only 120 runs
to win was lost because the wicket was difficult and suited the
West Indies fast bowlers. I have gone about five times out of
India with the Indian touring team from 1979 to 1997. Not once
did I suspect that any match was fixed or that any player had
placed a bet for losing the match.
f. Mr. S K Shyam, press correspondent, Reuters, and freelance
journalist
I have been writing in various newspapers for the last 30 years.
I was a Sports Editor for nearly 26 years for three different
newspapers.
I have covered 126 test matches to which India was a party and I
have also covered about 100 one day matches.
I have travelled a lot for viewing and commenting on cricket.
Some times, the future of a match changes so suddenly that it
creates doubts in the minds of people about the bona fides of the
players. People jump to the conclusion that the match is lost
because the players are got at. But sports critics like us have
to look into these problems and try to analyse the likely causes
of the result. After a most careful consideration. I have come to
the conclusion that it is not only difficult but impossible to
fix a match through the medium of one or two players. In one day
cricket, even one or two failures of key batsmen do not matter.
The others can make up for it, which has happened very often. For
fixing a match, one will have to get at a large bunch of players
which is extremely difficult to do. Players are known to have
played badly, deliberately, on a few occasions. But, that is
because of internal rivalries, especially some animous against
the captain.
I have come across people who boast of their friendship with
players. They exploit that friendship by spreading rumors like
that they placed a certain bet on behalf of that player. It is
very difficult to separate the facts from fiction. No player
would risk his whole career by beig directly involved in an
illegal activity like betting on cricket. My own experience is
that the key players who have worked so hard to get into the team
and to retain their form, will not sell themselves because they
also consider it is great honour to represent their country . I
am of the opinion that in the interest of this great game of
cricket, people cant be allowed to pass off or masquerade as
journalists. Those people never cover any match in detail but
manage to go on a tour abroad to cover a series. Thereby they get
privileges of a journalist like sitting in the Press box, where
all telecommunictions are very easily available. I have seen that
the ony business of these people is to receive and make telephone
calls. At the end of the day, they hardly write a line on the
cricket of the day. The entry to the journalists should be
subjectd to close secrutiny so that ony genuine and established
journalists will have access to the press room, .That will
effectively reduce rumors about the journalists being involved in
betting.
g. Pradeep Vijaykar, assistant editor, Times of India, Bombay
I have gone twice to Sharjah and recently to Toronto and Pakistan
when the Indian cricket team was touring. I do not rule out the
possibility of fixing an international cricket match. That can be
done by getting at say, two key players. If the others play well,
the fixing may fail. But, where the fixing has been attempted 50%
of the times one may succeed in fixing the match. Punters do not
always win the bet. They take their chance and bookies seldom
lose because they hedge their bets. Therefore, a failed attempt
in fixing a match does not hit the bookies. I have watched the
Indian team closely for the last 20 years and I have seen today's
players growing from their early beginings. I do not think that
they would take money for losing a match. There may be a stray
case here or there by way of an aberration. There are temptations
in all walks of life and, some times, some players find it
difficult to resist it. The test match which Pakistan lost againt
Zimbabwe in about 1993 has all the trappings of a fixed match. In
some foreign countries where betting goes on lawfully on a large
scale on cricket, winners of bets are not even paid their moneys.
The bookies just do not part with the money . Because of the
betting rumors, it has bcome difficult to cover a match because
if any side loses, the, the general public suspects match fixing.
It is very hard to swallow that our players will take a bribe or
bet to lose a match. Cricket cannot be compared to horse racing
where mafias rule the roost. In places like Sharjah where money
power plays a large part, there can even be presuure on Umpires
in fixing a match. Some times, even Umpires seem to give
decisions which shock the spectators and the commentators alike.
h. Pradeep Magazine, Sports Editor, Pioneer
I joined the Pioneer in Feburary this year. Before that, I was
working as Special Correspondent of Indian Express, Delhi, for
about 15 years.
I have gone on all major cricket tours abroad. In the last couple
of years, there is tremendous amount of talk in the Press Box and
outside about a large amount of betting. I have myself seen
people sitting in the Press Box and talking on mobile phones to
outsiders on the state of the wicket and the likely result of the
match. These phone calls used to come and go every few hours to
update the information. This and other news like a bookie being
thrown out from the Press Room in Sharjah led to further rumours
that there is communication between players and the bookies. The
news which appeared in the newspaper about the Sharjah incident
was in 1993-94.
In 1983, when Kapil Dev was the captain of the Indian team, I had
written an article in the Indian Express dated 17th December,
1983, saying that Kapil Dev had said to me that the Indian team
was interested more in making money than in playing the game. My
article led to some controversy. But the important point is that
Kapil Dev had not said anything about fixing a match or about
betting. He was saying something about players who were
interested in gifts more than in playing the game. Kapil Dev
later on contradicted even that statements after few days.
I have also written an article dated 19th April,1997 at George
Town - West Indies, when India played the last test match against
West Indies, saying that I was personally offered a sum of Rs. 40
lakhs by a bookie for helping him to approach our players so that
we could fix them. When I mentioned this to Sachin Tendulkar, he
got furious and said that he thought it beneath his dignity even
to talk about such a thing. I have mentioned this also in my
article dated 19th April. I have stated in the said article that
the person who offered me the money used to phone from Delhi
while I was in George Town, when I conveyed him what the
conditions about the weather and wicket were. He fixed the fees
of my advice at Rs 15,000 per match. He did send Rs. 15,000 to my
house when my wife told him that all this was illegal. Hearing
that, he fled from my house and I did not hear anything about him
since then. I have mentioned all these in my article of 19th
April,1997. This episode shows that atleast the bookies believe
that it is possible to fix a match through proper contacts. I
will not be surprised if I come to know that some matches with
India are fixed. I however, have no evidence to show that any
match has been fixed. Stories about match fixing are believed in
some countries. For example, Salim Malik as per newspaper reports
in Pakinstan, was accused by the team manager in Toronto for
being in touch with the bookies and for sabotaging Pakistan's
chances.
j. H Natrajan, Sports Editor, Indian Express
I have been working in the Indian Express for the last 17 years.
There can be no smoke without fire. There should be some truth in
the rumor about the match fixing and betting. But I have no
evidence with me on either of these questions. I cannot say that
any particular match was fixed or that, any particular player in
the Indian team bets. What I can say is that in 1994-95, when I
was in Sri Lanka at the time of Singer Cup Series, a Pakistani
photographer with whom I was sharing a room said to me that lots
of allegations and counter allegation are being made in the
Pakistani dressing room about the particular match of Australia
Vs Pakistan. Salim Malik was the captain of the Pakistan team. I
had heard a few things about our players but it would be very
unfair on my part to mention their names because I have no
evidence. Some players have made allegations against other
players but even then I thought that our players against whom
allegations were so made, had an unimpeachable character. It is
surprising that such allegations were made by different players
at different times., evidently unrelated to each other . But, I
still do not believe those allegations. For fixing a match, it is
quite enough to get any two key bowlers and batsman. Managing a
run-out is not very difficult. But, it is very difficult to say
without any concrete evidence that Indian matches are fixed or
particular match was fixed. When strange things happen on the
field, suspicion is naturally aroused. Coupled with established
fact of large betting, such incidents then tend to give credence
to match fixing allegations. The umpire can also be a key figure
in match fixing, though it is not a known way of doing it. I do
not know whether that is prevalent. But I can say that an Indian
international umpire told me that he was offered money to give
certain decisions. But all these allegations depend on the oral
word and there is no concrete evidence. In the absence of such
evidence it would be unfair for me to make any positive
statements either on the question of match fixing or the
involvement of our players in betting. But there is no question
that a large amount of betting takes place in cricket matches.
3. Besides interviewing the persons mentioned above, I perused
the following reports of managers of the Indian cricket team:-
a) Report of Mr. U. Prabhakar Rao on the tour to Sharjah from
17th October,1991 to 25th October,1991. b) Report of Mr. Ajit
Wadekar on the Singer World Cup series in Sri Lanka 1994. c)
Report of Mr. N. Venkata Rao - Manager and Mr. Ajit Wadekar,
Cricket Manager on the New Zealand tour for the centenary for
Quadrangular Series - 1995. d) Report of Mr. KN Singh on the tour
to Sharjah for the Pepsi Asia Cup 1995. e) Report of Mr. Sunil
Dev - Manger and, Madan Lal Sharma - Coach, on the tour of South
Africa and Zimbabwe, 1996-97. f) Report of Mr. DV Subha Rao -
Manager, Madan Lal Sharma - Coach, on the tour of West Indies in
February - May 1997.
4. During the pendency of this enquiry, reports appeared in a
newspaper, the Asian Age in September1997 to the effect that
Howrah Police had arrested two leading bookies, Om Prakash
Dhanuka and Basant Kumar Dugari. These reports say that several
incriminating documents were ceased from the residence of those
persons and that, the newspaper had acquired information showing
that "The scandal might involve big names in the game". Mr.
Surajit S Kar Purokayastha, the Howrah Superintendent of Police,
contacted me and told me over the telephone that the Calcutta
Police had passed on the necessary information to the Bombay
Police. Immediately thereafter, I got into touch with one of the
top police officers in the city of Bombay. He told me over the
telephone that a large amount of betting on cricket takes place
in Bombay. I requested him to verify the report in the Outlook
regarding a certain police officer who had played for the
University and who possessed taped evidence on the involvement of
players in betting and fixing matches. A week or two later, I
contacted the said officer when he told me on the telephone that
he had said his team to investigate into the allegation but no
such police officer could be identified. I was also informed on
the telephone that further investigation has not been fruitful
since it has not been possible to identify any particular player
in the team as having participated in the betting or matchfixing.
Several newspaper articles, reports and quite a few writings were
forwarded to me by well-meaning journalists and individuals. The
purport thereof maybe summed up by saying that almost everyone
believes that there is a large amount of betting in India. Some
people also believe that Indian players are involved in betting.
No one, however, has furnished to me any information about the
involvement of any particular player or players in betting or in
match fixing.
continued in Part II