KPL scam: Police raid Karnataka cricket association secy

Bengaluru, Dec 20: The Bengaluru Police here on Thursday searched Karnataka State Cricket Association (KSCA) Secretary Suresh Menon's residence and seized some electronic gadgets, an official said.

"We have seized one laptop, one tab and two mobile phones from Menon," Kuldeep Jain, Deputy Commissioner of Police (central crime branch), told to IANS.

"The crime branch team visited the residence of Menon, currently honorary secretary of the KSCA, with a search warrant," Roger Binny, the state cricket association president, said in a statement.

Binny said the police sought information pertaining to the scandal-hit T20 tournament, Karnataka Premier League (KPL), from Menon, which he assured to give, promising full cooperation in the investigation.

Vinaya Mruthyunjaya, state cricket association treasurer, said Menon would continue to be the KSCA Secretary. "He is Secretary and will continue to be. It's only a question of cooperating in the investigation and that he will do," Mruthyunjaya told IANS.

Menon is the highest state cricket association official to be questioned about the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) approved local tournament. However, the T20 tournament is staring at an uncertain future.

A string of players, KPL team owners and others connected with the tournament have been arrested and questioned. The police have adopted a multi-pronged approach in the months-long investigation and deployed new methods. They are gathering data to confront the accused with undeniable evidence.

The official social media accounts of KPL, which were engaging with fans, have gone silent since few months.

Meanwhile, Binny appealed the media to refrain from speculative, insensitive and factually incorrect reporting. "A section of the media has left many players/match officials, who toiled to bring laurels to the state and the country, hurt and dejected," said Binny.

Run by the KSCA, KPL, an intra-state T20 tournament, has been mired in betting, honey-trapping and spot-fixing controversies.

Started in 2008 and envisioned to be a feeder tournament to the cash-rich BCCI-owned Indian Premier League (IPL), KPL has emerged as a leading local franchise-based league.