Arrested bookie allegedly names two Gujarat players involved in betting scandal

The Anti-corruption unit of the BCCI confirmed the arrest of three suspects in regards to a betting scam. The unit had been monitoring the activities of the suspects who have been identified as Ramesh Nayan Shah, a businessman from Thane, Vikas Chauhan, and Ramesh Kumar both of whom hail from Kanpur. 

BCCI, in collaboration with Uttar Pradesh police, nabbed Shah and Chauhan from the same hotel where the Gujarat Lions and Delhi Daredevils players were staying and picked up Ramesh Kumar from the Green Park stadium where the match was going on. The policemen recovered 40.90 lakh rupees in cash and five operational mobile phones from the hotel room of the suspects.

The police indicated that the bookies might have already placed bets on the match before being arrested. Investigations and questioning of the suspects revealed that Ramesh Kumar who was contracted for putting up the hoardings in the stadium had booked the other two in the room while Shah was in constant contact with a man named Bunty who is believed to be the Kingpin of the racket.

Shah revealed the names of two Gujarat Lions players on being questioned by the police who were referred to in a message sent to Bunty. The message read "the two are set and will do as asked". In a second message, Shah texted that the Gujarat side will end up losing the match even after scoring 200 runs. 

The BCCI addressed the issue in a recently released statement.

"The anti-corruption unit of the BCCI has been tracking activities of certain individuals, as a result of which, three suspects were arrested in Kanpur, on Thursday. The Uttar Pradesh police crime branch could successfully foil the alleged betting attempts of the accused. This was an outcome of the ACU of the BCCI, having worked closely with various law enforcement agencies, who will continue further investigations, in this matter."

The betting scam has once again brought the cash-rich league in the headlines for all the wrong reasons after 2013 match-fixing scandal that saw the suspension of two teams and massive administrative changes in BCCI. We would hope that the T20 carnival does not become a part of another controversy in the days to come.