Mumbai, Nov 3 (IANS) Sundar Raman, under investigation for alleged wrongdoing in the 2013 Indian Premier League (IPL) match fixing and betting scandal, has resigned as the tournament's Chief Operating Officer (COO), media reports said on Tuesday.
Raman was one of those named in the Lodha Committee report on the IPL scam, which questioned his role in the scandal. He was at the helm of IPL affairs when the scandal broke out. He took his position in the league's inaugural season in 2008.
BCCI president Shashank Manohar has accepted his resignation, espncricinfo reported on Tuesday. Several other TV channels and media outlets also confirmed the development.
Raman is believed to have met Manohar in Nagpur on Monday and submitted his resignation. The development comes after the BCCI chief had earlier criticised the board's decision to retain Raman as its COO despite being under the scanner.
Raman will formally leave the high-profile position on November 5.
The Supreme Court-appointed Justice Lodha Committee has earlier suspended franchises Chennai Super Kings (CSK) and Rajasthan Royals from IPL for two years by the in the spot fixing and betting scandal that rocked the cash-rich Twenty20 tournament in 2013.
The committee also said the fate of Raman was to be ascertained later as the investigation against him is ongoing.
Raman had told the committee that Gurunath Meiyappan, son-in-law of then Board chief N. Srinivasan was not CSK official. But his contention was rejected in the report filed by the committee.
Apart from Meiyappan, the committee also recommended the suspension of Royals co-owner Raj Kundra, both of whom were found guilty of betting, for life from any cricketing activity undertaken by BCCI. The guilty duo were also suspended from any cricket related activity for a maximum period of five years.
Raman is now scheduled to meet the Lodha committee on November 15.
The BCCI's Annual General Meeting (AGM) will take place on November 8 in Mumbai.
