MCA pays Rs 32 lakhs to spot-fix tainted Ankit Chavan

Mumbai: Ankit Chavan, one of the three Rajasthan Royals players, who was charged with spot-fixing during the 2013 IPL and banned for life by the BCCI, was paid his Ranji Trophy dues worth Rs 32 lakh recently by the Mumbai Cricket Association.

MCA vice president Ravi Savant told PTI that they had written to the BCCI in November 2014, seeking permission to give the player his dues but did not get any reply from the Board, so they went ahead with the payment.

It includes match fees plus his share of the MCA’s bonus amount that was given to all the team members for lifting the Ranji title in the 2012-13 season.

“We wrote to BCCI after his parents approached us, seeking the Board’s permission to give him his dues as those were due to him before his transgression and subsequent ban. But when we got no reply (from BCCI) till March, we proceeded to grant him his dues,” Savant explained.

What action, if any, is taken by the changed ruling order in BCCI – with Jagmohan Dalmiya heading it – remains to be seen.

Chavan, S Sreesanth and Ajit Chandila were implicated in the spot-fix scam and arrested by the police. While the first two have been banned for life, the BCCI is yet to decide on the punishment on Chandila.

Meanwhile, MCA has also decided to bar the Cricket Club of India from conducting any matches or taking part in any tournaments under its jurisdiction and it will also not provide umpires for the BCCI’s Mumbai-based affiliate.

Action against CCI has been taken for proposing TC Mathews of Kerala as the vice president from West Zone at the BCCI’s AGM held last month in Chennai though he belonged to South Zone and for not seeking “formal permission” from MCA to conduct IPL games last season and this season, said Savant.

“The CCI representative at the Board’s AGM proposed outsider Mathews’ name as vice president from West Zone. He belongs to South Zone. They have also not taken formal permission from us to host IPL games.

“They have been conducting matches under our jurisdiction since 1945 and are now saying they are independent. Let them hold their own matches. We will not provide them with umpires or allow them to take part in our tournaments,” Savant said.

Incidentally, Mathews defeated Savant – who was the incumbent vice president – by one vote to become one of the five BCCI vice presidents.

Asked about the CCI players who will be affected, Savant said “they can play for the other clubs (affiliated to MCA). We will be writing to CCI now.”

Savant said the MCA managing committee has also decided to punish its errant players Suryakumar Yadav, who was stripped of captaincy for his rude behaviour with team members earlier this season, and teenage batsman Sarfaraz Khan – for his abusive manners – by withholding their Ranji dues for this as well as the next season to guarantee “better behaviour”.

Yadav was removed midway as captain and replaced by Aditya Tare while Sarfaraz lost his place in the squad for poor performance.

PTI