I am clean, clean, clean, says Azharuddin

Former Indian captain Mohd. Azharuddin in an unsigned written statement has denied that he was the former captain who disclosed Rs. 16 crores under the Voluntary Disclosure of Income Scheme (VDIS). Saying "this is my response" Azharuddin threw a sheet of paper from the bus he boarded on the way to Indira Gandhi International Airport.

The unsigned statement read "This is all hearsay, all gossip. Whatever anybody has talked about it is untrue, false and baseless. I am clean, clean, clean. I again say that I have not disclosed Rs 16 crore in VDIS and I am not the culprit. All the allegations which have been made against me are false and untrue, hearsay and loads of rubbish. Anybody can make this type of gossip video. It has really no meaning at all."

Earlier, Assistant Commissioner of Income Tax Vishwa Bandhu Gupta who was unaware that the conversation was being taped, had alleged that the former captain who declared Rs. 16 crores under VDIS was "Azharuddin", when asked whom he suspected of being the declarant.

For the first time since the recent turmoil broke, former Indian captain Sunil Gavaskar reacted to the incident. Responding to the video tapes the master batsman told a web site that he would talk to the probing agency as he was not interested in the prolonged 'tossing' game.

In his statement, Gavaskar said "The matter is in the hands of proper authorities and the need of the hour is that all information is given to them. That will be the quickest way to resolve this matter rather than giving and asking for reactions for anything that crops up every other day."

Talking to a news agency yesterday from Bangladesh, Gavaskar said "There may be an odd rotten apple in the pack, but others are clean and they deserve the cloud of suspicion be taken out over their heads. A thorough inquiry should be done so that everything comes out above the board and players can go with their heads held high." Asking for a time frame, Gavaskar said "I certainly would like to see a time-frame set for current players, say, before the next season starts in September. Inquiries regarding former players and administrators can take as long as the authorities want."

Gavaskar admitted that the media should play the role of a watchdog in exposing any wrong doings in cricket, "but they have to decide where to draw the line. It should not be carried away one way or the other. The media should remember that reputation is built over years." The scorer of the maximum hundreds in Tests opined that the recent allegations prove that people want to hog the limelight.

Sunny, as he is popularly known, said "If you've been in the spotlight which is lost now, there is a tendency to rush to the media. That temptation to get back into the spotlight is dangerous." He felt that people tried to settle their personal scores adding "That may well be the case. Some people might have some grudge from the past which they want to settle now, but at the end of the day greater good will prevail."

Finally on the punishment for those involved in match-fixing, Gavaskar said the International Cricket Council (ICC) should delete all records of any player found guilty and "This is apart from the law of the land which will decide on what punishment should be given to them," he added.

Former Test captain GS Ramchand questioned the timing of Prabhakar's public screening of the video tapes. Speaking to a newspaper in Mumbai Ramchand described it "a sad day for Indian cricket" and added "I feel it was done to embarrass the Indian team on the eve of its departure for the Asia Cup in Dhaka. If at all, he needed to hold a press conference on the issue, he should have waited till the completion of the event."

Ramchand felt this is bound to have an impact on the team. "This development is bound to affect the team members. It is a sad day for Indian cricket. Now the cricketers would not talk to anyone, including their friends. It is not a good thing," he said.

The Mumbai cricket Association (MCA) joint secretary Ratnakar Shetty in a statement said "it is a black day in Indian cricket." He added "It is a great tragedy for Indian cricket. Whether Manoj Prabhakar was right or wrong in using these methods (of videotaping conversations) is secondary. The (recorded) statements of cricketers and administrators exposes the Indian cricket scenario," he said. "After reading all this, it will be difficult for people in India and abroad to believe Indian cricketers and administrators."

Meanwhile, in a significant development, Minister of State for Youth Affairs and Sports Syed Shanawaz Hussein said the footage shown by Prabhakar could not form the 'basis' for a CBI inquiry into the ongoing match-fixing scam.

On a separate front, the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) has established links between the Delhi player Ajay Sharma and the bookies. The sources revealed that some cricketers and officials questioned by the agency have named the former Indian player. The investigative agency sources said that they will question Ajay Sharma on his return from England where he is playing league cricket.

The recent 90-minutes video tapes shows former Indian wicket-keeper Kiran More, former Indian captain Ravi Shastri's wife Ritu and a Lucknow-based chit-fund operator mentioning Ajay Sharma's name as a key figure in the match-fixing scam. The CBI is likely to question all those - players, administrators and others - whose names figure in the tape in connection with the scandal.