Serbian bookie approaches two Delhi FC players, tells them they can make ‘lot of money’ fixing games

Panaji: A Serbian bookie approached two players of Delhi FC to fix matches in the ongoing Second Division I-League and told them they could “make a lot of money.”
Fixing, he told the players, is “generally the best business in the world at the moment.”
The bookie contacted the players three times between March 19 and March 21, prompting them to report the approaches to club director Ranjit Bajaj.
The club then registered a complaint on the Asian Football Confederation’s Integrity App, and since there was no response from the federation, Bajaj went public, attracting attention of All India Football Federation (AIFF) secretary general Shaji Prabhakaran who said they “have a zero tolerance towards this aspect.”

Prabhakaran sought details of the approaches and a formal complaint was lodged with the AIFF.
“We have escalated this matter and the integrity officer is looking into it,” Prabhakaran told TOI on Thursday. “This is an international matter and we have alerted the AFC. All processes are being followed.”
Bajaj said he was surprised that no club has ever reported an illegal approach from bookies to the AIFF, even though by now it’s common knowledge that India’s football leagues are being targeted by international bookies to fix matches.
“I was the first one to report an approach five years ago when my team (Minerva Punjab FC) was playing in the I-League, and since then, I am the only one who has complained,” said Bajaj. “How is it possible that nobody complains? I approached AFC through the integrity app and since I was not contacted, decided to go public.
“There is no point trying so hard when it's now so easy to buy a player or a referee and fix the match for as less as Rs 50,000. That's all it takes (to fix a game). Fixing is happening in a very big way in many (state) leagues. It’s a menace which can kill our game in the womb itself.”
The Serbian bookie first contacted one of the Delhi FC players on March 19 and then left a similar message for another player an hour later. Since there was no response, two more messages were sent on Instagram on March 20 and March 21.
In his messages to both the players, the bookie said Second Division I-League matches are being beamed on betting shops in Serbia.
“If you are interested in cooperation, that would be cool and you can make a lot of money,” he said in one message. In another one he told the players that “fixing is generally the best business in the world at the moment.”