BCCI decides to remove Lalit Modi

[ejaz007]

BCCI decides to remove Lalit Modi
Updated at: 1100 PST, Monday, April 19, 2010


NEW DELHI: Mr Lalit Modi has had a trail of failed ventures and defaults till four years back but has a lifestyle now that includes a private jet, a luxury yacht and a fleet of Mercedes S class and BMW cars all acquired in the last three years.’

Thus opens a highly confidential and explosive report by the Indian income-tax department that has been in the possession of the government for six months now but formed the basis of any action only on Thursday evening after a raging controversy over secret ownerships and sweetheart deals in the Indian Premier League, or IPL, stalled both houses of Parliament.

Highly-placed sources in the IT department and the Congress party said that Mr Modi has been on the government radar for quite sometime. The alleged opaqueness with which he conducted the multi-billion dollar cricket tournament and the manner in which he took on home minister P Chidambaram in 2009 seem to have resulted in a detailed enquiry into his activities by the I-T department.

The report a startling picture of the alleged activities of the controversial IPL commissioner, ranging from his manipulation of land deals in Rajasthan and the existence of a maze of shell companies and offshore entities used to route payments and equity stakes worth hundreds of crores of rupees. The report also makes the startling allegation that Mr Modi—through his associates—was ‘involved’ in ‘betting’, while “insider information and outcome fixing of IPL matches were hinted at”.

What will come as most disturbing to cricket fans is that the report suggests pervasive betting and outcome fixing in the IPL. According to the report, Modi himself is involved through Samir Thukral, a Delhi-based “page 3 personality” with an “opulent lifestyle despite having no apparent source of income”.

The report alleges that Modi has silent ownership in three IPL teams Rajasthan Royals, Kolkata Knight Riders and Kings XI Punjab.

Incidentally, Rajasthan Royals won the first IPL tournament in 2008. The report also says Kolkata Knight Rider’s co-owner Jay Mehta, who is married to actor Juhi Chawla, is “partly fronting” for Lalit Modi. Industrialist Jay Mehta denies these allegations.

According to an official response from KKR, the team is wholly-owned by actor Shah Rukh Khan and Mr Mehta and there are no other shareholders.

The report claims that Modi owns a stake in Kings XI Punjab through Akash Arora, owner of Delhi-based BPO Netlink Blue. Arora is a part-owner of the team along with Ness Wadia and Mohit Burman, according to the report.

BCCI decides to remove Lalit Modi

 

[ejaz007]

Indian taxmen widen IPL probe
Thursday, April 22, 2010
News Desk

NEW DELHI: Income tax authorities swooped on Wednesday on companies associated with the Indian Premier League as the government widened its probe of the cash-rich cricket tournament.

Tax raids were conducted on the Mumbai offices of the Multi Screen Media and the World Sports Group, the two companies handling the IPL’s television rights, the Press Trust of India (PTI) reported.

Premises of the Cricket Association of Bengal at the Eden Gardens in Kolkata were also searched “for IPL-related papers”, the news agency added. The Directorate of Enforcement, an investigative wing of the finance ministry, has registered a case against the IPL for possible violations of foreign exchange rules and regulations.

The income tax department has summoned IPL officials on Friday to hand over all tournament paperwork, including details on television rights, sponsorships and deals with franchises and players.

The tax investigation began after a government minister was forced to resign on IPL-related corruption allegations and claims from the political opposition that the league was a

front for money laundering and illegal betting.

Angry officials of the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) have blamed IPL chief Lalit Modi for the controversy and sought his removal. Modi is the driving force behind the success of the IPL, which has seen its brand value surge to 4.1 billion dollars in just three short years.

The IPL, which began in 2008, features the world’s top cricketers playing a shortened format of the game known as Twenty20. There are eight franchises owned by India’s wealthy businessmen and film stars. Two more franchises will be added from the 2011 season.

Modi brought down junior foreign minister Shashi Tharoor by revealing on Twitter the ownership structure of a new IPL franchise from his home state of Kerala that showed a free stake had been gifted to a woman identified by Indian media as the politician’s girlfriend.

Tharoor, a former top UN diplomat, was forced to resign on Sunday over allegations — which he strongly denied — that the stake was a kickback for his help in putting together the consortium that bought the franchise.

The furore led the main opposition Bharatiya Janata Party to demand an investigation into the IPL, which it labelled “the Corruption Premier League”.

Indian taxmen widen IPL probe

 

[Super Falcon]

from a day one when i forst saw his face i was convenced that firstly he is invoved in ipl bookies tooo and he is fully resposible for pakistani players not playing in the format he is *** hole and now his time is over of luxury days now time tro be behind the bars if indians are serious

 

[Hyde]

from a day one when i forst saw his face i was convenced that firstly he is invoved in ipl bookies tooo and he is fully resposible for pakistani players not playing in the format he is *** hole and now his time is over of luxury days now time tro be behind the bars if indians are serious

It is possible yaar.............. who knows if peoples were betting about Pakistani players whether they will play or not? and he was behind not playing Pakistani team in IPL?