Soon after three Pakistani cricketers were convicted and jailed for spot-fixing in Britain, another sensational match-fixing case is all set to be reopened by the Delhi police.
Top government sources said investigations into the match-fixing scandal involving late South African skipper Hansie Cronje were due to restart soon.
While Cronje died in a 2002 aircrash before he could be charged, the case has been revived after the British authorities responded to a 2007 “letter rogatory” sent by the Delhi police seeking important details about another key suspect, London-based bookie Sanjiv Chawla, after a gap of four years. They have given some details which the Delhi police feels could be crucial in a further probe.
The police has informed the highest quarters in the government about this development and it will soon submit a status report to the relevant court, informing it of its intention to restart investigations.
Cronje had been forced to step down as South African cricket captain after the match-fixing allegations surfaced in 1999. The Delhi police crime branch had then intercepted some conversations on a cellphone (number 9810294943) that was being used by Cronje. It has now been discovered that this cellphone actually belonged to the Delhi bookie Rajesh Kalra.
Using this phone Cronje had talked to several people in Mumbai and New Delhi, most of whom were subsequently tracked by the crime branch and their statements recorded. Cronje was heard talking about team composition and other key aspects related to a match. A number of Indian and overseas cricketers and cricket administrators have also been questioned in the case so far. All these details will be mentioned in the status report that the police will file in court in the next few days.
The Delhi police had first sent a letter rogatory to Britain in 2000, but as the response to that was not “satisfactory”, another one was sent in 2007 after some new facts came to light, an official said. Incidentally, the police is still awaiting a response from South Africa on a letter rogatory sent to that country.