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Prabhakar yet to hand over tapes to CBI

Onkar Singh, in Delhi

The Central Bureau of Investigation today denied that the focus of the match-fixing probe is on three key Indian players only.

Reacting to a news item in a leading daily, CBI spokesman S M Khan clarified that the agency did not issue any statement to any newspaper.

CBI joint directors R N Savani and M A Ganapathay, who are heading the investigations in the match-fixing and television rights deal for the 1998 Dhaka knock-out tournament cases respectively, were not available for comment.

Sources, however, confirmed that investigations in both the cases have gained momentum. They disclosed that the team under Savani, which is looking into the match-fixing case, has drawn up a list of more then 50 top bookies in various parts of the country and is busy talking to them.

"We have been talking to the bookies to find out if they have information relevant to our case," Khan said.

However, the CBI is in no mood to share any information with the media, as it feels premature leakage of the findings could alert those whose names have figured during the course of interrogation of the bookies.

Khan also said that Manoj Prabhakar has not yet handed over the controversial tapes in which he has managed to catch players and administrators off-guard in his bid to get supportive evidence against Kapil Dev.

Prabhakar has alleged that the former India captain was the player who had offered him Rs 2.5 million to under perform in a match against Pakistan in the Singer Cup tournament in 1994.

"We have heard about the tapes and read about them in the newspapers. So far the web site and Prabhakar have not got in touch with us about handing over of the tapes. We're interested in finding out what evidence the tapes have that could be of any value to us. As far as Kapil Dev's offer to Prabhakar is concerned, we are still to get any solid evidence in support of the allegations levelled by Prabhakar. In any case, the offer was only made; money did not change hands. Besides, the concerned match was washed out," a senior CBI officer said.

He, however, hastened to clarify that it does not mean that the CBI is not taking the case seriously. "The agency will evaluate the evidence collected on the tapes and then decide whether they have any value or not. We have already said that tapes would form part of the evidence. But what would be its value we still do not know," explained the officer.

Minister for Sports Sukhdev Singh Dhindsa, who returned from a foreign trip this morning, is believed to have expressed displeasure at Prabhakar carrying a cam corder when he visited him couple of days before the CBI inquiry into match-fixing was announced on April 29.

" When someone told the minister about what Prabhakar had done, he was visibly annoyed as he was one of those who was trying to help the former cricket player. Where was the need to videotape whatever minister told him. Sometimes ministers make some off-the-record remarks which are not meant to be reported. Since Prabhakar is not a journalist, therefore, he had no business to carry the video camera with him while meeting the minister," said an aide close to Dhindsa.

"Besides, it was a question of breach of the minister's security cordon. In future we will have to screen everyone to find out if the visitor is not carrying a hidden camera with him," he added.

Tarun Tejpal of tehelka.com admitted that they had received a notice from Kapil Dev's advocate, V N Kaura, asking the web site to tender an unconditional apology within seven days.

"The letter consists of a couple of pages. Frankly, I have not bothered to read the whole of it. We have no intention of apologising to Kapil Dev. He is welcome to go right ahead and file a suit against us for damages," said Tejpal.

When asked why the web site has not handed over the video tapes to the CBI, as announced by them on Saturday, Tejpal said some of the tapes are still bring transcribed and they will decide what to do with them only after the transcription is completed.

"In all probability, we would be handing over the tapes sometimes next week only," he said.

Meanwhile, a gloomy atmosphere prevails in Kapil Dev's office in Bengali Market in New Delhi. "It is depressing to see our boss being dragged into a controversy like this unnecessarily. He is such a good man. People take advantage of his mild behaviour," said an official of Dev and Dev.

Prabhakar, soon after the screening of the film 'Fallen Heroes', left Delhi to attend to his businesses in other parts of the country. Attempts to contact him are constantly shunned by his wife with a polite 'no'.