Sachin Tendulkar denies seeking land from IIT Delhi for academy

Cricket legend Sachin Tendulkar Sunday denied planning a cricket academy and seeking land from IIT Delhi to build it, adding he was “appalled” by reports suggesting so. “I am appalled to read the stories that suggest some land has been asked from IIT-D for academy in my name,” Tendulkar said in a tweet. [caption id=“attachment_1656459” align=“alignleft” width=“380”]  Sachin Tendulkar. AFP[/caption] “I have not even planned any academy neither do I want any piece of land for any purpose,” he added. The batting maestro’s comments come after media reported Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) Delhi director Raghunath K. Shevgaonkar quit following pressure from the ministry of human resource development to provide the IIT ground for a cricket academy that Tendulkar was keen on opening in the city. “Wish that basic facts are checked from me before publishing such fiction using my name,” Tendulkar further slammed the report. According to a media report, Shevgaonkar was also under pressure to pay nearly Rs.70 lakh to former faculty and BJP leader Subramanian Swamy as his “salary dues” between 1972 and 1991. IANS