‘Kundra was active in betting for past three IPL seasons’
7 Jun 2013 1:03 AM GMT
Rajasthan Royals (RR) co-owner Raj Kundra reportedly confessed to his involvement in betting during the Indian professional League (IPL). The admission came after a 10-hour-long grilling session on Thursday at the Lodi colony office of the Special Cell of Delhi Police. Kundra is married to RR owner and Bollywood actress Shilpa Shetty. Police said Kundra’s passport has been seized and they are now probing the involvement of hawala transactions in betting.
On Thursday, a senior police official of the Special Cell of Delhi police said, ‘During the investigation, Kundra confessed that he was actively involved in betting for the past three years. Around
Rs one crore was invested by Kundra, but he lost all his money.’
When a senior police official was asked whether Kundra will be booked for betting, they said, ‘We are investigating spot-fixing and if we start booking people for betting then the list of accused will become unmanageable.’ ‘So far, spot-fixing charges have not been established on Kundra. It is too early to jump to conclusion whether he was a part of the spot-fixed IPL or whether he will get a clean chit in the matter,’ the official added.
Kundra’s name emerged after his friend and business partner Umesh Goenka, whose statement had already been recorded under Section-164 CrPC last Friday, told investigators that Kundra and Shetty were both active in betting in IPL-6. A source in the Special Cell said: ‘Goenka was called five times at Lodi Colony where he was questioned several times. On Monday night, Goenka took the names of the couple and we then asked Kundra to join the probe.’
Goenka knew Sidharth Trivedi, RR player from past few years, as they both hail from Ahmedabad. The official added, ‘Goenka provides information to Kundra about the matches by ttalking to players. This makes him a bookie. Goenka may be booked for acting as a bookie. He was betting for the past six years.’
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