SA assurance to Delhi Police on Cronje details

In a move that would benefit the Delhi Police in their investigation into the Hansiegate scandal, the King Commission chief prosecutor Shamila Batohi assured the transfer of details of former South Africa captain Hansie Cronje's bank accounts and telephone calls to bookies in India and abroad. The assurance was given during the meeting between Batohi and Delhi Police commissioner Ajai Raj Sharma on Thursday.

"Cronje's bank details will be of immense help to us as entries will show what money was deposited in the account, which we will use as collaborative evidence when the case goes to trial. The details will also show the origin of the dirty money", said a top police official to AFP. The official added that the police suspects an alleged Londonbased Indian bookie, Sanjeev Chawla, of having made the clandestine transfers to the South African's account from Britain.

Meanwhile the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI), which was asked by the government in May to probe the match-fixing scandal in India, has almost finalised its report. According to PTI, the agency will now send the report to its legal department to sharpen the rough edges. This would give the agency some idea whether the evidence collected by them could stand up in a court of law in order to prosecute anyone questioned during the probe.

Sources added that the report would be submitted to the Union Sports Minister, SS Dhindsa, only in the first week of October. The Minister had earlier said the report would be submitted by September 29.