Interpol receives request from Indian police

By Thomas Abraham

LONDON, APRIL 19. Interpol has received a formal request from the police in India for help in investigating the match fixing allegations that have rocked the cricket world. Mr. Sanjiv Chawla, a London-based businessman has been named by police in India as one of the main suspects in the case, and it is thought that the CBI could have asked for permission to send an investigator to question him. Mr Chawla has maintained his innocence and denied any involvement with the scandal.

A spokesman for the British National Criminal Intelligence Service (NCIS), which acts for Interpol, confirmed that they had ``received a request to make enquiries about an individual,'' but did not name Mr. Chawla. This request has been passed on to the London police. No details of the request have been made public, but if the CBI has asked for permission to question Mr. Chawla, then the local police will facilitate this. Mr. Chawla runs a clothing business and lives in the north west London suburb of Hendon. He has made it clear through his lawyers that he is not in hiding, so if he is required for questioning, it will not be difficult to find him. The NCIS said that the request from India was not for extradition, but merely for assistance in a police enquiry. Meanwhile, the English cricket authorities have said they will pass on allegations that English test cricketers were approached by bookies to fix matches to the police. The England and Leicestershire player, Chris Lewis, has said that he was told by a sports promoter that three England players had taken money to fix matches.

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Section  : International
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