The Tamil Nadu government on Friday suspended IPS officer G. Sampath Kumar, who had deposed before the Mudgal committee appointed by the Supreme Court to inquire into allegations of betting and match-fixing in the IPL.
The suspension came at a time when the Crime Branch CID of the State police is planning to file a charge sheet against Mr. Sampath Kumar after investigating allegations that he took several lakh of rupees as bribe from bookies involved in the betting.
Police sources said Home Secretary Apurva Varma issued an order on Thursday saying that disciplinary proceedings were contemplated against the officer, now working as Superintendent of Police (Railways), and he was suspended with immediate effect. The officer was asked to remain in Tiruchi during the suspension period.
Evidence overlooked
In his deposition before the Mudgal committee, Mr. Sampath Kumar accused the Crime Branch CID of not trying to uncover the masterminds involved in match-fixing and confining its investigation to betting. The investigation was hampered as vital evidence revealed by Utham Jain, alias Kitty, alleged to be a bookie, was overlooked by the CB-CID, he said.
Mr. Sampath Kumar, a former Superintendent of Police of the ‘Q’ Branch CID, said Kitty had revealed during interrogation his knowledge of how Chennai Super King’s Gurunath Meiyappan, city-based hotelier Vikram Agarwal and a top cricketer were involved in fixing one of the IPL matches in Chennai.
He suggested that the case be transferred to a multi-agency investigation led by the National Investigation Agency.
Soon after his statement was published in the media, CB-CID officials said they would investigate the allegations levelled by him by re-examining the suspects.
On Friday, the officials maintained that the investigation was in an advanced stage, and parried questions whether summons were issued to the suspects. Mr. Kumar could not be reached for his comment.
