ICC meeting: Bindra seeks permission to attend

Former BCCI president Raj Singh Dungarpur, shortly after the inauguration of the National Cricket Academy in Bangalore on Monday, flew to London to represent India at the crucial ICC meeting on match fixing and betting, being held at Lord's on May 2 and 3. Dungarpur was asked to go in place of BCCI president AC Muthiah who rushed back to the country mid-way through the trip due to the sudden demise of his mother Abhirami Chidambaram, wife of former BCCI chief MA Chidambaram in Chennai. Muthiah had reached Frankfurt when he received the news of his mother's death.

Another former BCCI president IS Bindra is already in London and has sought permission to attend the ICC meeting. He has handed over a letter to the ICC president Jagmohan Dalmiya in this regard. Bindra said he would be very happy to attend the special session of the ICC meeting and present "what I believe is crucial information with regard to the scourge of match-fixing and betting. This evil is now threatening to destroy all that is dear to us in the game."

Bindra said he would be happy to attend the meeting. "I will be happier however if they don't call me," he said and added that he would go the press with the information he has on match fixing and revenues generated through televison rights. He further stated that such income earned is not churned back into the game. Bindra claimed that ``in some cases, more than 80 per cent of the revenues generated are going into the hands of vested commercial interests.''