The International Cricket Council (ICC) announced on Wednesday that Mehar Chhayakar, an Indian cricketer who was formerly based in the UAE and was connected to corruption cases in the Middle-Eastern nation in 2019, had been banned from all forms of the game for 14 years for seven violations of the anti-corruption code.
Chhayakar was found guilty of trying to sway decisions regarding the UAE's ODI series in Zimbabwe in 2019 and games in the Global T20 franchise event in Canada the same year by the ICC Anti-Corruption Tribunal.
Mehar Chhayakar has been barred from all forms of cricket for 14 years, the International Cricket Council announced in a statement on Wednesday. He was found guilty of seven violations of the ICC and Cricket Canada Anti-Corruption Codes.
The cricketer was accused of "fixing or contriving in any way or otherwise influencing inappropriately" on two separate instances, according to the ICC, which also specified the charges against him.
In respect to games in the Zimbabwe vs. UAE series in April 2019 and games in the GT20 in Canada in 2019, "Chhayakar, was found to have infringed the following sections of the ICC Anti-Corruption Code and Cricket Canada Anti-Corruption Code," according to the ICC.
"Article 2.1.1 (on two separate occasions) -- Fixing or contriving in any way or otherwise influencing improperly or being a party to any agreement or effort to fix or contrive in any way or otherwise influence improperly, the result, progress, conduct or any other aspect of any International Match, including (without limitation) by deliberately underperforming therein.
"Article 2.1.4 (on two separate occasions) -- Directly or indirectly soliciting, inducing, enticing, instructing, persuading, encouraging or intentionally facilitating any Participant to breach any of the foregoing provisions of this Article 2.1.
"Article 2.4.6 (on two separate occasions) -- Failing or refusing, without compelling justification, to cooperation with any investigation carried out by the ACU in relation to possible Corrupt Conduct under the Anti-Corruption Code (by any Participant), including (without limitation) failing to provide accurately and completely any information and/or documentation requested by the ACU (whether as part of a formal Demand pursuant to Article 4.3 or otherwise) as part of such investigation.
"Article 2.4.7 -- Obstructing or delaying any investigation that may be carried out by the ACU in relation to possible Corrupt Conduct under the Anti-Corruption Code (by any Participant), including (without limitation) concealing, tampering with or destroying any documentation or other information that may be relevant to that investigation and/or that may be evidence of or may lead to the discovery of evidence of Corrupt Conduct under the Anti-Corruption Code)."
"We first encountered Mehar Chhayakar through his role in organising a fraudulent cricket event in Ajman, in 2018," stated Alex Marshal, general manager of the ICC Integrity Unit. His ongoing attempts to deceive and harm our sport are further evidenced by the charges for which he has since been given a protracted suspension.
"We will pursue and obstruct those who try to taint cricket with tenacity. The Tribunal has delivered a strong message to anyone attempting to undermine our game by imposing a 14-year ban.
The prior charges of former UAE players Qadeer Khan and Gulam Shabbir are connected to Chhayakar's offences. In relation to approaches they received from Chhayakar, Qadeer and Shabbir both consented to punishment for their acknowledged violations of the ICC Anti-Corruption Code.