NEW DELHI, July 13: A Mumbai batsman has been suspended for making a corrupt approach to an Indian Premier League player, the Board of Control for Cricket in India said on Monday.
Hiken Shah, 30, does not play in the IPL but made the alleged approach to an unnamed teammate from Mumbai who plays in the IPL.Shah, who has played 37 first-class games and once turned out for Mumbai in a tour game against England in 2012, has been suspended from all cricket organized by the BCCI pending an inquiry.
"BCCI has zero tolerance for corruption in the game of cricket," BCCI president Jagmohan Dalmiya said in a statement. "We have and we will take swift action against such incidents to set a precedent and control the menace of corruption in the game. While placing the player under suspension, I have referred the matter to the disciplinary committee of the BCCI to take further action against the player involved."
Shah's suspension comes only a day ahead of an expected announcement by a Supreme Court committee on the punishment for IPL officials guilty of being in touch with illegal bookmakers in a 2013 spot-fixing case.
Team officials Gurunath Meiyappan of Chennai Super Kings and Raj Kundra of Rajasthan Royals were found guilty by an earlier Supreme Court committee led by Justice Mukul Mudgal.
According to IPL rules, a team can be suspended if its officials bring the tournament into disrepute.
The IPL controversy erupted in 2013 after a group of players including test cricketer Shantakumaran Sreesanth were arrested by Indian police for underperforming in exchange for money from bookies.