Azhar's allegations incorrect: CBI

The Central Bureau of Investigation on Monday said the allegations levelled by former India cricket captain Mohammad Azharuddin -- that some Bombay players were not investigated properly by agencies probing the match-fixing scandal -- are 'factually incorrect'.

"It is all wrong. It is not something new," CBI director R K Raghavan told reporters, when asked to comment on the charges levelled by the banned cricketer.

He said all these allegations had surfaced during the six-month investigations, but "we have come to a conclusion and on that basis, we have submitted our report to the government."

Azharuddin had, in an interview to Outlook, said: "Nobody talks of the Rs 70 lakh cash found in Sunil Gavaskar's gymkhana locker. What about Ravi Shastri's Ali Bagh farm house and other costly properties? How did Vinod Kambli lose his money from a locker?"

Asked about the investigations into the 'unholy' nexus between cricketers, administrators and the underworld, the CBI director said, "The probe has begun and we have collected some material and we are in the process of getting more. It will take some time."

Raghavan said the CBI is also working in tandem with Income Tax authorities to unravel this nexus.

Mail Cricket Editor