NEW DELHI: Unhappy with Delhi Police for not pursuing 2013 Indian Premier League spot-fixing case spot fixing case in the High Court seriously and effectively, former Indian cricketer and suspended BJP MP Kirti Azad has sought Central Bureau of Investigation probe into the matter.
Sources said Azad has written to Central government and Delhi Police to transfer the case to CBI.
Last year, the Delhi Police had challenged the acquittal of three IPL cricketers – S Sreesanth, Ajit Chandila and Ankit Chavan -- and 34 others in the spot-fixing case who were discharged by city court in July last year. The then Special Commissioner of Police S N Srivastava heading the probe has been transferred to Central Reserve Police Force following which the spot fixing case did not moved ahead.
Last year, the High Court had sought responses of suspended cricketers S. Sreesanth, Ajit Chandila and Ankeet Chavan and 33 others on Delhi Police plea thereafter the matter is still pending in the court. “The police has not been able to pursue the matter further,” said a source.
Delhi Police while filing a review petition in High Court had stated that the trial court has “erroneously held a mini trial” in the matter which is “impermissible in law” at this initial stage when the case is in its infancy.
In July 25, Additional Sessions Judge Neena Bansal Krishna in Patiala Court had discharged all the accused when the case was put for order on framing of charges against the 37 accused persons, who were on bail. Five accused persons, including Dawood Ibrahim and Chhota Shakeel, are shown as absconders in the case.
In the petition, police had pointed out that the trial court had committed a gross “error of law” when it has meticulously and in an exhaustive and elaborate exercise shifted through the material and evidence brought on record, overlooking the fact that the matter was at the stage of framing of charge and the evidence was yet to be recorded in the trial.
Demanding to set aside the judgment and final order of discharge, police also said that the court has erred on facts in holding the link between Dawood Ibrahim and Choota Shaqeel and other accused. The police said that there is more than one FIR in preceding 10 years as required under Section 3 of MCOCA (continuing unlawful activity) and in the process failed to note that at least four FIRs were registered against Dawood Ibrahim and Choota Shaqeel in Mumbai.
The police also pleaded that all the accused should be sent for trial in accordance with law.
The police petition also stated that when raids were conducted on May 17, 2013, 35 mobile phones, 6 laptops, ipad, dish TV, set top boxes, 3 internet cards, 3 wifi routers, electronic printer, TV decoders of various companies, LCD TV 40 inches, handwritten diaries and papers were recovered from the arrested bookies.
The trial court in its 175 page order had stated "...even if entire evidence of prosecution is accepted, then too it is not established that there exists a core crime syndicate of Dawood, Chhota Shakeel who have been indulging in the organized offence of betting and match fixing and also dealing with money so generated through hawala.”
The court had stated that Delhi police has failed to establish any nexus or link between various accused with Javed Chutani (Dawood's aide) as part of organized group and said that case under MCOCA is not made out.
The court had added that the best case could have been under Public Gambling Act, but "that also is not prima facie established from the evidence placed on record by the prosecution." The court had pointed out that the game of cricket is a game of skill and cannot be held as a game of chance, therefore it is exempted under a section of Public Gambling Act, from the definition of Gambling.
In July 2013, the police had filed a chargesheet in the IPL spot fixing scandal and made mafia don Dawood and aide Shakeel the main accused in the case, claiming the entire betting syndicate was masterminded by the fugitive don and all other accused were facilitating the illegal acts of D-company.
In the chargesheet police claimed that the arrested bookies and fixers were the conspirators while Sreesanth and Ankit Chavan were the facilitators. Other cricketer Ajit Chandila has been named as the conspirators. Police claimed that Dawood and Shakeel operated through Salman, a bookie in Pakistan and Dr Javed along with Ramesh Vyas and Tinku Mandi – two Indian bookies.
On May 16, 2013, three Rajasthan Royals cricketers --- Sreesanth, Chavan and Chandila --- were arrested for their alleged involvement in the spot fixing.
The chargesheet, running in over 6,000 pages, was brought to the city court in a van and ten policemen unloaded it from the vehicle and carried it inside the courtroom.