Players accused by Lalit given clean chit, says BCCI

NEW DELHI: The ICC’s Anti-corruption and Security Unit is understood to have found no corroborating evidence against the three international cricketers who had been accused by former IPL chairman Lalit Modi of having received affluent gifts, in cash and kind, from an Indian businessman.
The ICC has not officially commented on the ACSU’s investigation but it was alluded to by the BCCI on Monday, which said it had not received any information from the ICC and hence believed the players had been given a clean chit.
“The follow-up is there is nothing in that,” BCCI secretary Anurag Thakur said at a press conference. “If they had found something, they would have reported it back to us. If there is nothing from the ICC on it, it has to be a clean chit.”
Modi, in a letter to ICC chief executive David Richardson in October 2013, had said he had been informed that the three cricketers — Suresh Raina, Ravindra Jadeja and Dwayne Bravo — had received houses and cash from a real estate baron, who is an alleged bookie.
While confirming Modi’s letter on Sunday, an ICC spokesperson had stated “standard operating procedures” had been followed, including informing the BCCI’s ACSU. The procedure involved the ICC carrying out an investigation and arriving at a conclusion as to whether charges could or could not be laid against the players involved.
The home boards of the three players mentioned in the Modi letter would have been informed as to the details of the investigation.
“The jurisdiction of the three players was under the ICC because they are international players. And if they have conducted an inquiry, they will be able to say something on the outcome of the ICC inquiry,” Thakur said.
All the three players named have been key members of the Chennai Super Kings, the franchise that is owned India Cements, which in turn is owned by the family of former BCCI president N Srinivasan.
During the 2013 IPL corruption scandal, Srinivasan’s son-in-law Gurunath Meiyappan was arrested for betting on IPL games. While the team has been under Supreme Court investigation since then, Srinivasan has taken over as the ICC chairman.
Asked if the Srinivasan-led BCCI would have swept the matter under the carpet or if the BCCI is throwing the ball back into the ICC’s court, Thakur replied in negative. “We are not passing the buck to ICC. When someone plays international cricket, it’s the ICC ACSU’s responsibility to investigate his deeds. ICC has investigated into the case and ICC is better placed to comment on its outcome. They haven’t informed anything in writing to the BCCI.”