It has been found that players were offered to do 'spot fixing' in the second edition of the Nepal Premier League (NPL) being held at the Tribhuvan University International Cricket Ground, while a group that was conducting 'betting' in India on a 'ball-by-ball' basis has been arrested by the police from the parapet of the stadium.

After it was found that a player was offered a ‘bookie’ of up to Rs 10 million for ‘spot fixing’, the Kathmandu Police Range is investigating by taking Dilpreet Singh from Ranimahal, Haryana, India, and a Nepali girl, Rebika Singh Thakuri. Similarly, 7 Indians who were involved in ‘betting’ were also arrested on Saturday. According to Kathmandu Police SP Pawan Bhattarai, they were found to have used websites like ‘Stake.com’ and ‘Betbook.com’ for betting. Initial police investigations have shown that a turnover of around Rs 25 million was made in betting.

Last Saturday, some suspicious activity was noticed in a corner of the parapet, which caught the attention of plainclothes police. Some young men who looked like Indians were paying more attention to their mobile phones than to the game. After finding that they were continuously focused on their mobile phones for an hour and a half, the police increased their surveillance. "From the beginning, plainclothes police were deployed to the stadium to ensure that betting could take place," said a police officer deployed at the Tribhuvan University ground on Saturday. "Finally, after it was almost certain that the group was involved in betting, we took them under control along with 15 mobile phones."

Those arrested are 31-year-old Raja Yadula, 35-year-old Mahesh Babu, 30-year-old Pandit Srinivasulu, 20-year-old Sheikh Shoyab, 32-year-old Mohammed Rafi Sheikh, 19-year-old Soikumar Tammisetti, and 28-year-old Sheikh Chand Basal, all from Andhra Pradesh, India. Technical examination of their mobile phones revealed that they were conducting betting through a betting site called 'Betacolor.com Live', said SP Kazi Kumar Acharya, spokesperson for the Kathmandu Valley Crime Investigation Office. According to the police officer involved in the investigation, they have already admitted their involvement in betting during their statements. 

‘There is a delay of a few seconds when the live broadcast of the matches being played in Nepal is broadcast on television or online,’ said a police officer. ‘During that gap of a few seconds, the betting site in India used to get information about each ball from the players who were watching the match live on the field through their phones and place bets on each ball before it was broadcast live on TV or online.’ The seven arrested for this purpose have been found to have arrived in Kathmandu from India only a few days ago. It has also been revealed that they are staying at the same place in Samakhusi. 

After it was revealed that ‘spot fixing’ had taken place in the T-20 League cricket held in Nepal from 9 to 12 December 2079, the police have been increasing extra surveillance in the cricket competition. In coordination with the ‘Anti-Corruption Unit’ of the Nepal Cricket Association (CAN), police officers have been deployed along with the players. In the meantime, Indian Dilpreet and Nepali girl Rebika were arrested. 

According to police sources, Dilpreet had initially contacted the players through Rebika’s Instagram account, saying that he would support the NPL team. While some players did not reply to such messages, one player agreed to talk. ‘He said that he thought nothing of it, but Dilpreet, who is in India, had proposed to meet and talk,’ said an officer of the Valley Crime Investigation Office involved in the investigation. ‘Accordingly, it seems that they met in Kathmandu on 1 Mangsir, the day the NPL started.’ Police say that the meeting was facilitated by Revika. 

Dilpreet’s proposal at a meeting at a hotel in Kathmandu shocked the player. ‘As soon as Dilpreet offered to pay the player Rs 10 million if he was run out on the ball of the over he said, the police were informed,’ says an investigation officer. ‘When you place a bet on a betting site, you get three or four times the amount, that’s why you made such a big offer.’ CAN has been adopting a zero-tolerance policy in cases of ‘match fixing’ or ‘spot fixing’ and has also been making players aware. According to spokesperson SP Acharya, the main role in this fixing attempt seems to be played by Indian citizen Singh, while both were taken into custody as it was seen that Revika's Instagram account was used. 

After such an illegal offer was made to the players on the very day the NPL started, the police have increased surveillance even on the field. According to the police, teams from the Central Investigation Bureau (CIB), the Valley Crime Investigation Office and the District Police Complex, Kathmandu have been deployed throughout the game in plain clothes. The police team, commanded by a police inspector, has been continuously monitoring the activities of the spectators by sitting on all sides of the stands. 'The police are making every effort to ensure that the game is conducted without any problems,' says Acharya, 'We are working to prevent any untoward activity.' 

According to the police, one team is working to ensure that there are no casualties, sloganeering and fights when a large number of spectators gather for the NPL, while the other team is monitoring betting, fixing and other activities. According to SP Bhattarai, there are currently 1,223 security personnel deployed at the stadium, while 2 to 400 police officers are deployed to protect the players' residences and movement. 

Bhattarai has also said that action will be taken if anything is proven wrong in the context of the promotion of a 'betting site' at the stadium. 'We do not even imagine that unfair practices will be committed in a game run by CAN in coordination with the International Cricket Council (ICC),' he said. 'If any wrongdoing is confirmed, we will take action.' CAN spokesperson Chumbi Lama, however, said that the ICC also has its own 'Anti-Corruption Unit' and that CAN also has an 'Integrity Unit' under it.