BENGALURU : With the Karnataka State Cricket Association (KSCA) polls slated for Thursday, outgoing administrators were involved in a final managing committee meeting on Tuesday. As per sources, the committee decided to suspend Karnataka Premier League (KPL) team Belagavi Panthers and its owner Ali Asfak Thara — who has been arrested on charges of betting in the T20 league — from all cricket-related activities.
The KSCA has been keeping an eye on the KPL matter after the Bengaluru police unearthed the betting links associated with Ali. The state body was communicating with the police on a daily basis. The ban of Panthers brings the number of teams in KPL down to seven from eight. It’s not clear at the moment how the vacancy will be filled. In all likelihood, this is one of the first things that the new committee will be addressing.
The police are still investigating, trying to see if there was any match-fixing as well. After the investigation, the police will file a chargesheet and then a case can be filed, which will open doors for legal proceedings.