Sports

No More Double Barrels

His conflict-of-interest accusations threw a clearer light

Advertisement
No More Double Barrels
info_icon

Niraj Gunde may have nothing to do with Aditya Verma’s PIL about the 2013 IPL betting-fixing scandal, but he became a part of the cleaning process of the BCCI by filing applications before the BCCI omb­udsman, alleging conflict-of-­interest allegations against top names.

Mumbai-based Gunde, 45, welcomes the SC judgement that has ord­ered the BCCI to make sweeping changes in its functioning. “All changes are good and should be accepted. If they [court] have taken cognisance of the issues, I’m happy,” Gunde tells Outlook.

People term Gunde an ‘activist’ or ‘anti-­corruption crusader’ while the man describes ‘consultancy’ as his profession. He admits his closeness to BJP MP Subramanian Swamy and says he came to know

Advertisement

N. Srinivasan through him. “Swamy and Srinivasan have a 40-year-old friendship. I know Srinivasan for 10 years.... Who all are connected with Dr Swamy, I know them all,” Gunde claims proudly. Gunde came to prominence in April last year when he circulated a photo of then BCCI secretary Anurag Thakur with a Chandigarh ‘soc­ialite’, an alleged ‘bookie’. Thakur retaliated by writing an explosive, open letter to former BCCI president N. Sri­nivasan, alleging that Gunde “operates on your beh­alf”. After the appointment of the ombudsman, Gunde filed several applications before him, alleging that current BCCI president Thakur and former chiefs Sharad Pawar and I.S. Bindra, apart from Sourav Ganguly, Lalit Modi, and Harb­hajan Singh, were all in conflict-of-interest situations.

Advertisement
Tags
    Advertisement
    Advertisement
    Advertisement
    Advertisement
    Advertisement
    Advertisement