5 years on... Narvekar & Co yet to face the music Almost five years after the infamous 2001 ticket scam, a full-fledged trial is yet to begin in a criminal case against Dayanand Narvekar and eight other accused. BY GUILHERME ALMEIDA
MARGAO, FEB 12 - Outgoing GCA chief Dayanand Narvekar might claim to have got a clean chit from the BCCI vis-à-vis the infamous 2001 India-Australia ODI match, but a criminal case is still hanging over his head in the sensational fake cricket ticket scam. What's more, the criminal case against Narvekar and eight other accused persons appears set for a record of sorts, with a full-fledged trial yet to begin till date. Further, even as the State is bracing up to host the India-England ODI match - nearly five years after the India-Australia ODI match gave negative pubicity for the state - the courts are yet to frame charges against the nine accused persons chargesheeted in the case. When this reporter took a round of the Margao lower courts on Friday, court sources informed that the ticket-gate case is posted for hearing on March 4 for arguments before framing of charges. So far, the case has been heard by as many as six judges during the last five years. And, every time the case comes up before a new judge, the arguments are heard afresh, thus causing delays. Says Adv A O Mendes, representing the State: "After receiving the order to represent the State, I have completed my arguments and have submitted written arguments before the court." "It's indeed surprising that a criminal case is just dragging on sans framing of charges to commence a full-fledged trial," remarked a noted criminal lawyer. Sources in the know say that much time was lost in the past with the State filing miscellaneous applications on many counts and over the question of GCA accounts. The Margao police had filed the chargesheet on July 5, 2001 against Dayanand Narvekar, GCA Secretary Vinod Phadke, Treasurer Rama Shankar Das, ticket contractor Chinmay Fallari, Venkatesh Dessai, Devdutt Fallari, Joaquim Pires, Gajanan Bhise and Narvekar's brother-in-law, Eknath Naik. The police have cited around 220 witnesses in support of its case. The nine accused have been charged for cheating, forgery, forgery for the purpose of cheating, using as genuine a forged document, causing disappearance of evidence of an offence committed and for criminal conspiracy. Among the charges made out against Narvekar, Phadke and Shankar Das is that the trio awarded the contract to Chinmay Fallari for Rs 68 lakh for alleged consideration after conspiring with the ticket contractor for sale of ticket by manipulation in the tender of the ODI match. The police further alleged that in furtherance of the conspiracy, excess tickets as well as fake tickets numbering 21,000 were printed at Hyderabad and Sivakasi in Tamil Nadu. Dayanand Narvekar, Vinod Phadke, Rama Shankar Das and then GCA's joint treasurer, Vivek Pednekar were also chargesheeted for endangering the lives of others due to overcrowding of the Nehru stadium on April 6, 2001. They were later discharged by court but state has preferred a revision in the Sessions court, which stands now dismissed.
