Maken orders probe into IPL finances – Cricket News Update
Indian Sports Minister Ajay Maken has ordered a probe into the finances of the Indian Premier League tournament, in order to investigate the possibility that players were paid through black money.
The minister requested the finance ministry to order an immediate probe by the Enforcement Directorate and Income Tax Department into the recent revelations regarding corruption in the Indian Premier League, particularly black-money transactions.
“ED and I-T are already probing IPL's FEMA violation. It's tightening the noose around BCCI. But now we have asked it to investigate whether players are being paid through other means. It's very evident that there are huge violations of foreign exchange
norms and black money,” Maken said.
Indian television channel, http://www.senore.com/Cricket/India-c750 TV, recently conducted a sting operation which revealed that players in the ongoing 5th edition of the IPL were involved in activities such as spot-fixing, in addition to accepting bribes and
striking illegal, under-the-table deals which offer them more money than the contracted amount supposedly agreed on.
The BCCI’s reaction to the shocking revelations was immediate – after arranging a meeting of top level board and IPL officials, during which the footage in question was scrutinized, the body ordered an immediate suspension of the 5 players named in the scandal,
namely http://www.senore.com/Cricket/Delhi-c780 Giants).
In addition to the suspension orders, the board also ordered an immediate inquiry into the issue, with http://www.senore.com/Cricket/RD-Shah-c2298 Sawami (the ex-head of the ICC’s anti-corruption and security unit) at the helm of the inquiry commission. However, Maken is of the view that any
inquiry ordered by the BCCI is likely to lack in transparency, owing to the board’s association with the IPL, and suggested that the two bodies distance themselves from each other in order to increase credibility and lower the chances of corruption.
“Suspending five players is not enough. Superficial investigation will not do. BCCI should get to the root of the problem. The only solution is that BCCI should distance itself from IPL. People running BCCI have interests in IPL. So, how do you expect a
fair trial?” Maken demanded, adding that the BCCI could not remain honest as long as it was connected to the IPL.
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