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The Chandrachud Report

11. I have no hesitation in rejecting the allegations made by Manoj Prabhakar. They are imaginary and unrealistic. The question naturally arises as to why he should have resorted to tactics like these. The answer is provided by his own peers. According to them Manoj lost his equipoise because firstly, to quote his own words, he was " thrown out of the Indian team". That deprived him of the opportunity to make handsome gains by the use of his unquestioned cricketing talents. Secondly. he was then discarded by his own home team the Delhi District Cricket Association. That definitely unhinged him because, having been a hero of the crowds for quite some years, he was relegated into oblivion. From the admiring eyes of countless fans to a dark room is a fall too big to bear even for the most philosophical. He then tried to open a new leaf in his life by contesting an election to the Parliament. He rushed in where angels fear to tread and lost his wicket like a tail-ender. That was the last straw which broke the brave back.

Almost every player and Manager who was interviewed by me spoke of Manoj as an impulsive, indisciplined and aggressive individual. All those who said this added that there can be no doubt that there can be no doubt that he was a lion-hearted player who was always on the kill and did his utmost for the team. It is to be regretted that a player of Manoj's calibre was not able to curb his immature and uninformed impulses. Cricket made him an idol of the crowds. Everyone regarded him as a fine allrounder. It is tragic that he should have made untrue allegations which are calculated to dilute if not to destroy, the glorious uncertainity, the fun, the charm and the camaraderie of a great game. The greatest harm he has done is to his own image as a key player in the team. Cricket, I believe will take care of itself. It is too deeply rooted in our lives and too widely liked and loved to be damaged or destroyed by unexamined outbursts of misguided individuals.

13. One of the questions referred to me relates to an article published in "The Pioneer" in its issue dated 19th April 1997. Shri. Pradeep Magazine, the Sports Editor of Pioneer was interviewed by me.

14. Shri Pradeep Magazine has made the following statements in his article:-

a) A person who claimed to be from Delhi offered him Rs. 40 lakhs if he could get top players of the Indian team fixed for him.

b) He stumbled into this man at Jamaica Airport. They got friendly. They spent 2 evenings together and the talk veered around to betting. The man confessed he had been to Australia, to South Africa and to England even when India were not involved in matches there.

c) As the friendship grew, the man told him how some Indian players had made money by fixing matches and how bookies and betters were racking in the money by manipulating the odds. Mr. Magazine told him that he was very close to a few of the players. The man said- Can you get Sachin Tendulkar and I will give you 40 peties or buy you a house in a posh South Delhi locality. Shri. Magazine told him that he will try which pleased him so much that he made another offer to him like this: "I know it will take you time to get these players fixed for me. In the mean time, I want to benefit from your expertise. I'm going back to Delhi, would you let me know each day of the test match, what the weather is like, how the wicket is to behave and which team has a better chance to win. I will pay you for this. I agreed. He agreed to pay me Rs. 15,000 for each test and one-day match. He promised that the money would reach my home each day against phone calls. As phone calls came from Delhi, I did tell him conditions here and the money did reach my home.

d) The story is based on a personal experience which Shri. Magazine had with a bookie. (Letter dated 9th May, 1997, addressed to the Secretary,BCCI).

15. Shri. Pradeep Magazine said in his statement before me that when he mentioned the incident of the bribe for Rs. 40 lakhs to Sachin Tendulkar, Sachin got furious and said that he thought it beneath his dignity to even talk about such a thing. Shri. Magazine further said in his statement that the episode shows that at least the bookies believe that it is possible to fix a match through proper contacts. Though Shri. Magazine has further stated he would not be surprised if he came to know that some matches with India are fixed, he had "no evidence to show that any matches have been fixed".

16. The article of Shri. Magazine and the statement which he made before me show that it is quite possible that bookies try to get at players in whatever team. But then, one cannot ignore the healthy reaction of Sachin Tendulkar. I am inclined to hold that Sachin's reaction is representative of the reaction of the Indian players, by and large. Further, Shri. Magazine has not disclosed the name of the person who offered him Rs. 40 lakhs, though, on his own showing, he got friendly with him, spent two evenings with him and their talk veered around betting.

17. Shri. Pradeep magazine's story in the Pioneer cannot be discounted as untrue as since he has no reason to make up a false story. I did not get the impression when I was interviewing him that he was prevaricating or narrating an incident specially coined for the gullible reader. But what Shri. Magazine has said neither helps to identify the bookie nor involves any particular player or players in the Indian team. Shri. Pradeep Magazine has rightly said that the bookies, on their own part, believe that matches can be fixed. Fortunately, the belief of bookies does not determine the rules and regulations of an orderly life.

18. Thus, though Shri. Pradeep Magazine's article in the Pioneer may show that the bookies try to get at players, even Indian players, it is not possible to hold on the basis of that article that or the statement made by Mr. Magazine before me that any particular Indian player or players lay bets, participate in fixing matches or deliberately perform below their form and ability.

That disposes of question (a) mentioned in the Reference to which the answer is in the negative, namely that the allegations made by Manoj Prabhakar as published in "The Outlook" in its issue dated 11th June 1997 are not true.

19. The next three questions, (b), (c) and (e) relate to the allegation of betting and match fixing by any Indian cricketer, BCCI officials, team officials, journalists or any other persons as alleged in "The Outlook" dated 11th June 1997 and in the issue of "Pioneer" dated 19th April 1997.

20. The answer to these questions are provided in clear terms by the various players, managers and journalists. The best way of dealing with these questions is to extract the relevant part of the statements made by them before me.

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