KPL franchise Belagavi Panthers' owner arrested in betting scam

Panthers owner got arrested by the Central Crime Branch in Bengaluru.

Belagavi Panthers owner Ali Asfak Thara | Twitter

Just a week after various Indian local T20 competitions came under the scanner for corruption claims, Belagavi Panthers owner Ali Asfak Thara got arrested by the Central Crime Branch (CCB) in Bengaluru for alleged betting during the recently held Karnataka Premier League (KPL).

Moreover, the CCB is conducting probes to determine if there were any match-fixing activities involved in the tournament, which is being organised by the Karnataka State Cricket Association.

The arrest took place on Monday (September 23) after the Police established that Thara had placed bets on matches with a Dubai based bookie.

"We arrested Belagavi Panthers team owner Ali Asfak Thara for placing bets on matches. The accused placed bets with the help of a Dubai-based bookie. Regarding match-fixing, it is still under inquiry. Investigation revealed that Thara was in touch with players of other teams during KPL matches. The players are being questioned," said Sandeep Patil, joint commissioner of police, CCB.

Read More: Sunil Gavaskar shares his views on alleged corruption in India’s local T20 competitions

Panthers have been a part of KPL since its inception in 2009. The 2017 KPL champions finished second on the points table in this edition before getting knocked out by Hubli Tigers in the second qualifier. India batsman Manish Pandey plied his trade for the same franchise this season. He featured in four matches for the Panthers side.

Apart from KPL, Tamil Nadu Premier League (TNPL), and Mumbai T20 League have also come under scrutiny for corruption allegations.

In fact, BCCI’s Anti-Corruption Unit has already started the investigation after some players reported match-fixing approaches from suspicious, unknown people.

(Inputs from Cricbuzz)

 
 

By Salman Anjum - 25 Sep, 2019

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