THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: The Special Investigation Team (SIT) probing allegations surrounding the failed proposal to bring Argentine footballer Lionel Messi and his team to Kerala has questioned former sports minister V Abdurahiman. He was questioned by a team led by SP P Vikraman in Malappuram on Thursday.
The sleuths questioned the former minister on matters including the criteria for selecting the sponsor, the legal sanctity of granting permission to a private party to sign a contract with the Argentina Football Association and the foreign visits he undertook in connection with the proposal.
A source said Abdurahiman denied any wrongdoing and maintained that the entire exercise was initiated with the sole objective of bringing Messi to the state and was undertaken out of goodwill. The SIT had earlier questioned a member of Abdurahiman’s personal staff.
The private sponsor, Reporter Broadcasting Company, is alleged to have received the government’s nod to sign a deal with the Argentina Football Association in violation of rules.
The company was selected as the sponsor without any bidding, while the state government reportedly failed to assess the revenue potential of the event before giving the private firm the go-ahead to organise it. The GST department had reported irregularities in the inflows and outflows of funds in the bank accounts of the sponsor.