CBI Launches Preliminary Investigation Into Football Match Fixing Claims
As many as five football clubs playing in the I-league, now the second tier of Indian football are under the scanner of the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) for alleged match fixing.
According to a news report by news agency PTI, CBI registered a preliminary enquiry into alleged match fixing in football matches in the country, officials said on Monday.
During the enquiry which began about a fortnight ago, CBI has sought and collected documents from the Delhi-based All India Football Federation (AIFF) on several Indian football clubs.
The role of an alleged match fixer based in Singapore in rigging the results of matches is under the scanner.
The officials refused to give any details about the suspects named in the preliminary enquiry as it could hamper the probe which is at a nascent stage.
They said the agency has received some documents while some are still awaited.
The agency has also sought cooperation of several Indian football clubs in joining the investigation, they said.
According to the sources familiar with the probe, two among the five clubs being probed are the Imphal based-Neroca FC and the now disbanded Indian Arrows, a developmental football club formed by the AIFF in 2010, with a main goal of nurturing young Indian football talents.
The club played in the I-league, until last year when the AIFF decided to discontinue participation and to instead focus on a new Elite Youth League (under 19) in the country.
A spokesperson for the Goa Football Association, said they were unaware if any Goa-based football clubs were under the CBI scanner, but said they were willing to cooperate with any investigation.
The CBI cannot conduct searches, arrests or question through summons under the preliminary enquiry, they said citing the law.
The central probe agency depends on cooperation of stakeholders during the preliminary enquiry and registers an FIR when it has prima facie material indicating a crime, they said.
Currently, Churchill Brothers, the football club owned by former Goa chief minister Churchill Alemao is the only club from the state to participate in the I-league, with other clubs like Salgaocar FC and Dempo SC withdrawing from the tournament after the I-league.
Allegations of match-fixing in the second and lower tiers of Indian football has raised eyebrows of suspicion after several unusual score lines during games, including games of the Goa Professional League that involves professional clubs based in Goa.