The case against the three arrest Rajasthan Royals players - S Sreesanth, Ankeet Chavan and Ajit Chandila, and several bookies could become stronger, as Siddharth Trivedi is likely to be made a prosecution witness in the spot-fixing scandal, according to the Delhi Police.
The 30-year-old Rajasthan Royals bowler has reportedly told police that he has information about the arrested bookies and knows how they keep in touch with cricketers like Ajit Chandila and others who went to parties together. He has also reportedly revealed that some foreign players also attended the parties.
The Delhi Police arrested the three Rajasthan Royals players in Mumbai on 16 May in connection with the spot-fixing. They were produced before the Saket Court before and were booked under section 240 (cheating) and 120B (criminal conspiracy) of Indian Penal Code (IPC). Police have also detained more than 10 bookies.
The Rajasthan Royals and the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) suspended the accused players for their alleged involvement in betting scandal.
The Mumbai Police Crime Branch (CB) also arrested Gurunath Meiyappan, CSK Team Principal and son-in-law of BCCI chief N Srinivasan, in connection with his role in the betting scandal.
Meanwhile, Indian batting maestro Sachin Tendulkar has finally broken his silence on the spot-fixing scandal, describing the developments as "shocking and disappointing. Former Indian captain and present Rajasthan Royals skipper Rahul Dravid had earlier expressed his disappointment over the betting scam involving his team members.
However, Indian cricket captain Mahendra Singh Dhoni, who is currently in England for ICC Champions Trophy, has come under severe criticism for not speaking up on the issue. He said he would speak up at the right time, drawing more flak from experts over his indifferent attitude.
