Goa police summons Lele for questioning

Sandesh Prabhudesai in Panaji

The Goa police on Friday summoned Jaywant Lele, secretary, Board of Control for Cricket in India and K P Kajaria, the BCCI observer for the final Australia-India ODI tie in Panaji, for interrogation in connection with the bogus ticket scam.

Lele and Kajaria have been asked to report at the Margao police station on Sunday, while Dayanand Narvekar, who heads the Goa Cricket Association, will be questioned on Saturday.

K Madhavan, the BCCI commissioner and former Central Bureau of Investigation deputy chief, was in Goa two days back. He met some senior police officers and assured BCCI's full co-operation in the probe.

"The purpose of summoning BCCI officials is basically to seek clarifications on certain issues," Superintendent of Police (south) I D Shukla said.

The police have already arrested six persons, including the ticket contractor and the GCA treasurer Rama Shankardas.

Though Narvekar on Thursday denied his involvement in the Rs 10 million ticket racket, the police claim to have already established a criminal nexus between the GCA and the ticket contractor.

While the police were hesitating all these days to summon Narvekar, a former chief minister, the summons issued to him on Friday indicate that some definite evidence against him has emerged now.

However, Shukla is not willing to reveal much at this stage. "Since a majority of GCA office-bearers are Narvekar's appointees, it's a must for us to talk to him," he said.

Meanwhile, GCA secretary Vinod Phadke was interrogated through the day on Friday. Shankardas, who was admitted to a hospital after he complained of discomfort, will return to the police custody on Saturday.

Eknath Naik, Narvekar's brother-in-law and the alleged unauthorised ticket agent, is still in a hospital.

Police teams with the two printers -- one based in Hyderabad and the other in Tamil Nadu -- allegedly responsible for printing the bogus tickets will reach Panaji on Saturday.