A big match-fixing controversy has broken out in the UP T20 League after Arjun Chauhan, the Kashi Rudras’ team manager, said a “bookie” paid him ₹1 crore to get a player to do something. When Chauhan told the police about the approach, they started an official investigation.
The claims include that someone who called himself a “big bookie” got in touch with Chauhan using an Instagram account with the handle “@vipss_nakrani.” In exchange for the manager making sure a player followed a set plan during a game, the individual offered a huge amount of money to be sent online in US dollars. The bookie also tried to get Chauhan to play by promising him that he could win at least ₹50 lakh in one game.
Hardayal Singh Champawat, the Regional Integrity Manager of the Anti-Corruption Department, has filed a FIR at the Sushant Golf City Police Station in Lucknow, where he is currently stationed. The allegation says that the Instagram user talked to the manager on the phone and sent messages, which the BCCI’s Anti-Corruption Unit (ACU) recorded. The ACU checked over the method and decided that it was a planned effort to commit a crime by rigging matches and betting illegally.
The police have filed a complaint under a number of parts of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS) and other laws, such as:
Sections 49, 56, 61, 62, 112, 318, and 319 of the BNS deal with abetting, criminal conspiracy, organized crime, cheating, and impersonating someone else to cheat.
Section 3 of the Public Gambling Act of 1867 punishes people who own or keep a common gambling house.
Section 66D of the Information Technology Act talks about cheating by pretending to be someone else utilizing a computer resource.
The Lucknow Police are currently looking into the claims to find out who is behind the Instagram account and whether there is a group of people who are helping them.