JOIN USIPL spot-fixing: CSK chief gets summons
A four-member Mumbai Police team probing the IPL spot-fixing case on Thursday pasted summons notice at Chennai Super Kings (CSK) CEO Gurunath Meiyappan’s residence at Nandnam in Chennai. He has been asked to appear for questioning on Friday.
Sources here said the team, comprising three inspectors led by a deputy commissioner of police level IPS officer from the crime branch, first tried to contact Meiyappan over the phone.
After he failed to respond, they went inside and pasted the summons notice on the door in accordance with the protocol. The Super Kings CEO was asked to appear before the Mumbai Police between 11 am and 5 pm on Friday. A copy of the summons was also delivered to the CSK’s office.
Meiyappan has, however, sought time till Monday to appear before the police. Sources in the crime branch said his request was received in the evening. “The request is under consideration,” a crime branch source said.
Though the full contents of the letter are not immediately known, it is believed that the CSK honcho wanted to be spared from making a personal appearance before the IPL final in Kolkata on Sunday, which his team is set to play.
Meiyappan was found to be in “frequent touch” with actor Vindoo Randhawa, son of Dara Singh, arrested for his close ties with bookies.
Mumbai Police Joint Commissioner (Crime Branch) Himanshu Roy told journalists here that four Bollywood biggies apparently laid bets through Vindoo. Without taking names, Roy said: “They will also be summoned for questioning to ascertain the veracity of Vindoo’s allegation. These four actors, including a veteran, were heavily into betting and they relied on Vindoo.”
Scrutiny of Vindoo’s telephone records revealed that he used to call up the bookies within minutes of talking to Meiyappan.
Meanwhile, on Wednesday night, Nashik crime branch officials arrested five bookies who took bets over the phone. The five bookies, four of whom are from Khamgaon in Buldhana district, were produced before a city court and remanded in police custody till May 27.