A view of the SCA (Strokers Cricket Association) cricket ground in village Sawara in Mohali (Express photo by Jasbir Malhi)
The investigation into the matches of the Uva T20 League, purportedly played in Sri Lanka but actually held at Sawara village near Mohali, is also delving into the possible involvement of Ravinder Dandiwal, the alleged kingpin of a major international tennis match-fixing syndicate, as named by Victoria Police in Australia.
Dandiwal has also been on the radar of the Board of Control for Cricket in India’s (BCCI) anti-corruption unit. “Yes, we are also probing Ravinder Dandiwal’s role. He could be behind this racket, since he is a local and his name had recently cropped up,” Mohali Senior Superintendent of Police (SSP) Kuldeep Singh Chahal told The Indian Express.
Dandiwal was recently named as the “central figure” in an alleged tennis match-fixing scandal related to at least two lower-level tournaments in Egypt and Brazil.
The interrogation of two accused Raju and Pankaj (7 have been named in the FIR) revealed that they booked the cricket ground of Strokers Cricket Association at Sawara village for Rs 33,000 through the complainant Parminder Singh, a resident of Kharar town.
READ | Hideouts of accused in fake Sri Lankan league scam raided
The complainant told the police that he works for a soft drink manufacturing company and one Goldy, who was known to him, had contacted him and asked to book the ground for holding friendly T20 matches of children from June 29 to July 5. The complainant then contacted Rinku Nehra, an official of the Strokers Cricket Association and visited the ground to book it for the tournament. Parminder then deposited Rs 10,000 in Rinku Nehra’s bank account on June 26.
“The accused (Goldy, Pankaj) had formed four teams of local players and held the matches at village Sawara and were also placing bets on the matches. I came to know about it and asked Goldy and Pankaj but they could not give me a satisfactory reply. They left after picking up all their equipment and kit from the ground on June 29,” Parminder alleged in his complaint.
? The Indian Express is now on Telegram. Click here to join our channel (@indianexpress) and stay updated with the latest headlines
For all the latest Sports News, download Indian Express App.
© The Indian Express (P) Ltd