Anti-Corruption Tribunal to begin spot-fixing investigations on Friday

KARACHI: Suspended cricketers Sharjeel Khan and Khalid Latif will appear before the the Anti-Corruption Tribunal of the Pakistan Cricket Board on Friday when the investigations in the spot-fixing scandal will be started.

The tribunal is headed by Justice (retired) Asghar Haider while Lt Gen (retired) Touqir Zia and former Test cricketer Wasim Bari are the other bench members.

The tribunal will hear the case pertaining to the suspended players, Sharjeel and Latif, who had challenged the charge sheet.

Both the players had admitted to having made contacts with bookies but denied accepting any monetary benefits from them.

An FIR will be lodged after the PCB inquiry is completed.

The PCB will send data to the FIA after a complete inquiry into the cases involving cricketers in the Pakistan Super League spot-fixing scandal.

The development came during a session of the PCB and FIA, held upon the direction of the Interior Ministry.

A case can only be registered against the involved cricketers after the PCB tribunal is done with the investigation. According to sources, the FIA will then initiate action depending upon the nature of the crime.

The FIA will also provide assistance regarding forensics and other matters for timely completion of tribunal’s inquiry.

The PCB and FIA on Wednesday reached consensus over probing the cricketers allegedly involved in spot-fixing in PSL 2017, informed sources.