IPL boss Shukla’s aide accused of seeking bribes, resigns

New Delhi, July 19 

A member of IPL chairman Rajeev Shukla’s personal staff was today forced to resign after he was suspended by BCCI following a sting operation, which alleged that he sought bribes to facilitate the selection of players in the Uttar Pradesh teams. A Hindi news channel telecast a telephonic conversation allegedly between Akram Saifi, an executive assistant of Shukla, and cricketer Rahul Sharma, in which Saifi is heard seeking favours in “cash and kind” to ensure Sharma’s selection in the state team.

Shukla is currently a director in the Uttar Pradesh Cricket Association (UPCA). “Saifi has tendered his resignation. When Shukla’s view was sought on this, he said it should be accepted with immediate effect,” said a top BCCI official. 

The development came after BCCI decided to investigate the matter as per its established regulations. As per the BCCI regulations, any complaint of misconduct is to be decided by a commissioner, who’s appointed by the BCCI president. The commissioner is mandated to submit his findings within 15 days, which will then be passed on to the BCCI disciplinary committee. 

The board’s Anti-Corruption Unit chief Ajit Singh said the audio tapes are being sought from the channel and will be examined. “We have taken note of the sting and will examine the entire matter. Until we speak to the people involved, it is difficult to say anything as of now,” he said.

Sharma never played for UP

The player in question, Rahul Sharma, has never been a part of the UP state team. He has alleged that Saifi sought bribes and other favours to ensure his selection in the team. He has also accused Saifi of issuing fake age certificates. 

“We are open to any inquiry. We follow a very transparent selection process at UPCA. I can’t comment on the conversation between the two as it’s their personal matter,” said UPCA secretary Yudhveer Singh, dismissing the charges of corruption in selection.  “Rahul has never even been a part of the state probables. He has no credibility.” 

Shukla has not reacted to the allegations yet.  Earlier, BCCI had sought to steer clear of any association with Saifi, even though it admitted that his salary was being paid from the board’s funds.  “BCCI only allocates funds for its office-bearers’ personal staff. They are free to appoint people of their choice as executive assistants and their salaries come from this fund. However, the board has got nothing to do with these staffers,” a top board official said. 

Former India player and UP captain Mohammad Kaif said the allegations had stunned him and demanded a probe into the matter. — PTI 

Big money is big attraction in cricket

Chandigarh: Why do the bigwigs of politics and business gravitate towards cricket? Possibly it’s not due to their love of cricket — instead, it could be due to their love for money and glamour. The Central Bureau of Investigation has filed a chargesheet against former Jammu and Kashmir Chief Minister Farooq Abdullah for his alleged involvement in a Rs 38 crore scam. Abdullah was a longtime president of the Jammu and Kashmir Cricket Association. There are corruption charges in several state cricket associations — the cases in Goa, Andhra Pradesh, Kerala and Delhi have become high-profile. An independent audit of the Delhi and District Associations accounts showed serious irregularities. Several associations have claimed over the last couple of years that they had no funds. But what happened to the money distributed by BCCI to them? Let’s examine BCCI’s figures of money distributed to the states. — TNS