In another sensational twist in the IPL betting scandal, Delhi Police today claimed that Rajasthan Royals' owner Raj Kundra had "admitted" to placing bets on his own team through a bookie who is also his business partner.
Police have confiscated Kundra's passport to ensure that he does not leave the country during investigations.
"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 (Umesh) Goenka, who is also a bookie," Delhi Police Commissioner Neeraj Kumar said. He also claimed that investigators have come to know that Kundra has lost a lot of money in betting.
Kundra, a British national and husband of Bollywood actress Shilpa Shetty, was questioned for 11 hours yesterday after cricketer Sidharth Trivedi told police that Kundra's business partner-friend Umesh Goenka used to ask for information regarding team formation and pitches.
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.
Kundra has since flown back to Mumbai and will be quizzed again soon.
To another question, the Delhi police chief said they have not invoked MCOCA in the case to deny bail to players. "We have applied law based on the crime committed," he said.
"There are reports that it has been slapped to prevent bail. But there is no such intention. We would apply the laws which are applicable in a case according to the nature of the crime," Kumar said.
Earlier in the day before Kumar's statement, Kundra had fumed at the media over the betting allegations, accusing it of "misconstruing" developments.
