Friday, April 23, 2010

IPL 2 hit by match-fixing, betting allegations

Serious concerns that matches were fixed during the second season of the Indian Premier League (IPL) add to the growing belief that it s truly Apocalypse Now for Indian cricket.

Sources confirm to NDTV that 27 cricketers are being investigated for match-fixing during IPL 2. In a report submitted to the Finance Ministry, income tax officials discuss allegations of betting involving IPL Commissioner Lalit Modi.

The owners of different IPL teams have expressed their unhappiness with reports of match-fixing; they want clarifications as soon as possible.

The IPL, earlier celebrated as an infusion of cricket, fans, and Bollywood has been passing through its darkest hour, ever since IPL Chairman unloaded on twitter revelations that forced Shashi Tharoor to resign as minister, PUT Modi s own job on the line, and forced Parliament to confront the very real possibility of senior politicians holding dangerously vested interest in a sport that is bursting at the seams with crores (the Indian cricket board is the richest in the world).

The government has ordered a wide inquiry involving the Income Tax Department and the Enforcement Directorate. Among the charges are foreign exchange violations, tax evasions, proxy ownership of different teams, and sweet deals for relatives and friends of politicians and cricket organizers and administrators.

In an interview to NDTV, IPL Governing Council member Mansoor Ali Khan Pataudi said that of the many problems that the IPL is riddled with, it s the prospect of match-fixing that worries him the most.

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