Indian news round-up

Union Minister of State for Sports SS Dhindsa on Tuesday called the Indian captain Sourav Ganguly and coach Kapil Dev for a meeting on April 27 in connection with the recent match fixing scandal.

Speaking to an Indian TV channel, Dhindsa said ''I have called Kapil, Ganguly, senior BCCI officials including its president and former captains and managers of the Indian team for a meeting on April 27 in New Delhi to discuss the issue.''

Dhindsa said that it had become important to discuss the issue in the wake of the charges against South African captain Hansie Cronje and some of his team mates that they fixed the matches in the one-day series against India last month.

International Cricket Council (ICC) President Jagmohan Dalmiya, on Tuesday said that the world body would hold an independent inquiry into the match-fixing charges against Hansie Cronje after getting all the relevant details from the South African Cricket Board and the Delhi police.

Speaking to the media at the CAB Club house in Calcutta, Dalmiya said ``we are in constant touch with the South African Board on this issue and the matter will not be swept under the carpet," and added ``those who seek to tarnish the image of cricket in this manner must be brought to book. We will continue to co-operate with the police on this matter. The Cronje issue has come as a big shock to everyone in the world of cricket."

Dalmiya said that the report of the UCBSA-initiated inquiry will be forwarded to the chairman of the ICC Code of Conduct committee, Lord Griffiths for a full fleged enquiry by the ICC.

Former Chief Justice of India, YV Chandrachud, who was the one-man inquiry committee instituted by the BCCI in 1997, on Tuesday called for re-opening the probe that he undertook three years ago in the wake of former Test cricketer Manoj Prabakar's allegations of match fixing by Indian cricketers.

Referring to the latest scandal involving Hansie Cronje, Chandrachud said "if what is now alleged comes true, the matter can be re-examined, and nothing will be lost by it. Everything depends on how well-founded these allegations are."