lost Rs 1 crore in gambling; police seize his passport
In a sensational revelation in the IPl scandal, Rajasthan Royals co-owner Raj Kundra on Thursday admitted to placing bets on his own team with the help of his bookie friend, Umesh Goenka, ever since he bought 11.7 per cent stake in Rajasthan Royals before the commencement of IPl Season 3, police claimed. Kundra and his friend Goenka’s passports have been confiscated to ensure that they do not leave the country during investigations. Kundra’s wife and actress Shilpa Shetty is likely to be questioned shortly on similar charges.
Delhi Police Commissioner Neeraj Kumar said, “He (Kundra) has admitted to betting. He used to bet on his own team. We have also come to know that he has lost a lot of money in betting. He used to bet through Goenka, who is also a bookie.”
However, the Delhi CP said they were not in a position to arrest Kundra right now because police did not have evidence other than his own confession to investigators which is not admissible in court. “We don’t have any other evidence. Suppose we have on tape his talk with bookies and if we recover some money then that is strong evidence,” Kumar said.
However, Kundra has refuted the police claim that he confessed to betting. “I will make formal statement soon, rest assured I am not involved in any wrongdoings. Do not misconstrue silence for guilt. Truth will prevail,” Kundra wrote on his twitter handle.
Sources said that Kundra had lost about Rs 1 crore in betting. It was Kundra, who had given Goenka unhindered access to the team hotel and RR players. Goenka spilled the beans on Bollywood actor Shilpa Shetty’s involvement in betting. He reiterated the charge in his deposition before the magistrate.
Special CP SN Srivastava said that the probe team is focusing on spot-fixing angle as betting is a minor offence. The police refused to divulge when Kundra would be called again for questioning.
“Bank accounts of Kundra and Goenka will be verified to check the money trail involved in the betting. Kundra has claimed that in total he lost around Rs 1 crore in betting in the last three years. Probably the bets were placed here but the money transactions were through the ‘Hawala route’,” said a senior police official.
Contesting the media reports quoting the Delhi police sources that she had also placed bets on a IPl match played in Jaipur, Shilpa tweeted: “For those who care, my apparent involvement in betting is complete nonsense and I have never bet on any cricket match ever. Truth will prevail…won’t be saying anymore as the case is sub judice”.
The actress, who co-owns the Rajasthan Royals franchise, had earlier in the day hit out at the media reports that her husband Raj Kundra had confessed to betting on IPl match. Kundra is the second IPl team owner after Chennai Super Kings’ Gurunath Meiyappan who is in the dock for alleged betting. If the charges against the owners are proved, BCCI can give Rajathan Royals the boot from IPl.