Rajasthan Royals owner Raj Kundra questioned for 12 hours

Just minutes after he was let off,Kundra tweeted: “It’s been a long tiring day. Kudos to Delhi crime branch Mr Sanjeev Yadav DCP,Mr Manishi Chandra ACP,Mr Srivastav CP,Mr M M Oberoi for their fantastic in-depth operation into this whole spot-fixing saga! These guys are the real heroes cleaning up cricket in India.”

He also tweeted,“A special mention to Inspector Tyagi whose real-life encounters and experiences were eye-opening. A real super cop. In a funny way loved today.”

Police sources said Kundra was asked to join the investigations after his name cropped up in the statement of his friend Umesh Goenka,a businessman and British national,who was called in for questioning.

According to the police,Rajasthan Royals player Siddharth Trivedi,in his statement before the magistrate last week,had alleged that Goenka regularly asked him for information on the team’s composition and the pitch report during this IPL season. Trivedi claimed that he did not divulge any details.

Following Trivedi’s statement,Goenka was called to the Special Cell office,where he was questioned over the last four days. Goenka’s statement,recorded before a magistrate,may be produced as evidence in the case.

Sources said Kundra and Trivedi were jointly questioned in the afternoon,after which the latter was allowed to leave.

A senior Special Cell officer said the police had called Kundra for information about the ownership details and financial resources of Rajasthan Royals.

“Kundra told us he has business interests across the world. He specifically told us about his cement business in Dubai. We asked him if he had any information on spot-fixing by the three players. We asked him if he followed the strict codes imposed by the ICC and the BCCI in relation to match-fixing,” said the officer.

Kundra and Goenka have reportedly been friends for the last 15 years or so. According to the police,Kundra holds around 42 per cent stake in an Ahmedabad-based steel company,Ashwini Steel,which is owned by Goenka.

“As of now,it appears that Goenka is not associated with Rajasthan Royals on paper,but is a close friend of Kundra. Their mothers have known each other since the time they lived in Punjabi Bagh,West Delhi. We asked Kundra questions related to everything regarding this controversy,” said the officer.

Asked how the bookies had free access to players during the tournament,Kundra reportedly claimed that while security was tight,the cricketers brought in outsiders by claiming they were close friends.