Tweet
By Leena Misra
AHMEDABAD: Close on the heels of the arrests in Mehsana, the city crime branch has identified over 20 bookies based in city, mostly reputed businessmen and stock brokers, who are involved in large-scale cricket betting.
Investigations have provided clues to their links with Dubai-based don Dawood Ibrahim. The crime branch believes they may be involved in match fixing, too.
The list of names identified, also includes names of reputed businessmen - one happens to be the owner of a famous city holiday resort.
However, the law does not recognise gambling as a 'major' offences and hence a punter emerges 'clean' even after trial. "Except for a bad name, the criminal goes scot-free", points out a senior police officer.
"Even if someone is convicted the maximum punishment is a six-month imprisonment or a Rs 500-fine," explains police commissioner PC Pande.
According to assistant commissioner of police (crime) Subhash Trivedi, "The evidence procured may not be concrete enough to arrest them against the offence and their links with Dawood, but we are sure that they have links with the Mumbai mafia."
Every international match played is believed to attract stakes up to Rs 25 crore from Ahmedabad alone, estimates Trivedi.
And with mobile phones flooding the market and moneyed businessmen and stock-brokers in their thirties turning punters, betting has become even more easier while detection is getting tougher.
"They buy pre-paid cards, use it and then dump it, leaving no trace", says police inspector (crime branch) DH Goswami.
Mehsana and Palanpur, which were the main centres of the satta business, have also registered the maximum number of cricket betting cases. The first such case was lodged in Rajkot in 1993.
"We booked six cases of cricket betting last year alone and have been regularly tracking them down since the World Cup", says Mehsana DSP Ashish Bhatia.
Bhatia estimates a sum of at least Rs 5 lakh was placed on the matches each day from Mehsana. "So one can imagine the money that goes into a series."
A 'Betting and Lotteries Act' does exist, but it leaves little to bet on. "It is a very weak Act," remarks Pande.
The modus operandi is simple. An operator manages to get 8-10 telephone connections and may be a computer where the list of punters can be recorded. A code language is developed. Mobile phones have made the job easier and a criminal can now afford to be faceless.
The seizures made in the Ahmedabad betting cases have shown the progressive rise in sophisticated gadgets used with the advent of the cyber era.
Till now four cases of cricket betting have been registered in Ahmedabad and none of them have been tried yet. "If they are convicted in the trial, they are simply chargesheeted", says Goswami.
And if there is an offence of match-fixing the accused is booked under section 420 of the Indian Penal Code.
"But how match-fixing can really be a case of cheating has yet to be proved, although the Delhi police have lodged a case in the match-fixing against the South African team," says a senior officer.
"At the most we are stretching the definition of gambling in this case", he argues.
Cricket betting cases in Ahmedabad
(March 1999: Arvind Kantilal Kakkad alias 'Anio' arrested from Ellisbridge during Pakistan- Lanka Test (11 telephones a colour TV and cash seized)
( May 1999: Kiritkumar Kantilal Shah from Ambawadi caught during the Pakistan-Windies one-dayer (13 telephones, two tapes seized)
( June 1999: Paresh Kantilal Shah from Sarangpur caught during India- Pak one-dayer (3 telephones, 3 mobile phones and cash seized).
( January 2000: Snehal alias 'Saifu' Shah arrested from Ellisbridge during the Pakistan- Windies match (1 TV, 1 computer, 10 telephones, 2 tapes, 3 mobile phones and cash seized).
AHMEDABAD: Close on the heels of the arrests in Mehsana, the city crime branch has identified over 20 bookies based in city, mostly reputed businessmen and stock brokers, who are involved in large-scale cricket betting.
Investigations have provided clues to their links with Dubai-based don Dawood Ibrahim. The crime branch believes they may be involved in match fixing, too.
The list of names identified, also includes names of reputed businessmen - one happens to be the owner of a famous city holiday resort.
However, the law does not recognise gambling as a 'major' offences and hence a punter emerges 'clean' even after trial. "Except for a bad name, the criminal goes scot-free", points out a senior police officer.
"Even if someone is convicted the maximum punishment is a six-month imprisonment or a Rs 500-fine," explains police commissioner PC Pande.
According to assistant commissioner of police (crime) Subhash Trivedi, "The evidence procured may not be concrete enough to arrest them against the offence and their links with Dawood, but we are sure that they have links with the Mumbai mafia."
Every international match played is believed to attract stakes up to Rs 25 crore from Ahmedabad alone, estimates Trivedi.
And with mobile phones flooding the market and moneyed businessmen and stock-brokers in their thirties turning punters, betting has become even more easier while detection is getting tougher.
"They buy pre-paid cards, use it and then dump it, leaving no trace", says police inspector (crime branch) DH Goswami.
Mehsana and Palanpur, which were the main centres of the satta business, have also registered the maximum number of cricket betting cases. The first such case was lodged in Rajkot in 1993.
"We booked six cases of cricket betting last year alone and have been regularly tracking them down since the World Cup", says Mehsana DSP Ashish Bhatia.
Bhatia estimates a sum of at least Rs 5 lakh was placed on the matches each day from Mehsana. "So one can imagine the money that goes into a series."
A 'Betting and Lotteries Act' does exist, but it leaves little to bet on. "It is a very weak Act," remarks Pande.
The modus operandi is simple. An operator manages to get 8-10 telephone connections and may be a computer where the list of punters can be recorded. A code language is developed. Mobile phones have made the job easier and a criminal can now afford to be faceless.
The seizures made in the Ahmedabad betting cases have shown the progressive rise in sophisticated gadgets used with the advent of the cyber era.
Till now four cases of cricket betting have been registered in Ahmedabad and none of them have been tried yet. "If they are convicted in the trial, they are simply chargesheeted", says Goswami.
And if there is an offence of match-fixing the accused is booked under section 420 of the Indian Penal Code.
"But how match-fixing can really be a case of cheating has yet to be proved, although the Delhi police have lodged a case in the match-fixing against the South African team," says a senior officer.
"At the most we are stretching the definition of gambling in this case", he argues.
Cricket betting cases in Ahmedabad
(March 1999: Arvind Kantilal Kakkad alias 'Anio' arrested from Ellisbridge during Pakistan- Lanka Test (11 telephones a colour TV and cash seized)
( May 1999: Kiritkumar Kantilal Shah from Ambawadi caught during the Pakistan-Windies one-dayer (13 telephones, two tapes seized)
( June 1999: Paresh Kantilal Shah from Sarangpur caught during India- Pak one-dayer (3 telephones, 3 mobile phones and cash seized).
( January 2000: Snehal alias 'Saifu' Shah arrested from Ellisbridge during the Pakistan- Windies match (1 TV, 1 computer, 10 telephones, 2 tapes, 3 mobile phones and cash seized).