Three held for betting on India-England match
By IANSSaturday, February 26, 2011
BANGALORE - Betting on Sunday’s India-England World Cup cricket match here could be around Rs.50 crore, a Karnataka minister said Saturday as police arrested three people organising the racket.
“We have arrested three people, seized Rs.2 million, a revolver, 25 mobile phones, three laptops and two cars from them,” Bangalore city police commissioner Shankar Bidari said.
The value of the cell phones, cars and laptops together would be more than Rs.10 million, he said. The arrests took place late Friday.
The arrests and seizure of huge amount of money came as state home minister R. Ashoka expressed fears that the betting racket could be around Rs.50 crore.
“I have given strict instructions to police not to spare anyone, however high and mighty they may be, if found betting on tomorrow’s (Sunday’s) match,” Ashoka told reporters on the margins of a function here.
Bidari said the three were picked up from a residence in Vyalikaval, an old and quiet middle-income locality in south Bangalore.
Bidari announced Rs.20,000 reward for the city crime branch team that detected the betting racket and arrested the three identified as ‘fighter’ Ravi, Vinod and Praful.
