Actor-turned-director Arbaaz Khan was on Friday summoned by Thane police in connection with an Indian Premier League (IPL) betting scam as per media reports.
Arbaaz, who is Bollywood star Salman Khan’s brother, is suspected to have placed huge bets in the cash-rich IPL matches.
India’s top bookie Sonu Jalan alias Sonu Malad from Mumbai was allegedly operating the betting racket. Arbaaz was summoned by Thane police days after Sonu Jalan was arrested. It is also being said that Jalan is linked with underworld don Dawood Ibrahim.
The 42-year-old Jalan was arrested on Tuesday. Two days after his arrest, the Thane anti-extortion cell found a diary with phone numbers of more than 100 bookies.
In the diary, names of Bollywood celebrities, contractors and builders had figured, reports say.
“We have booked him (Jalan) on betting charges. But we are, in a way, trying to trace his underworld connections to Dawood Ibrahim. It has come to our notice that Jalan assisted Dawood in fixing matches,” Pradeep Sharma, senior inspector of the anti-extortion cell, had said.
According to senior inspector of the anti-extortion Pradeep Sharma, Jalan had just returned from Dubai after meeting a Dawood aide. “He even has links in Pakistan, Afghanistan and other countries. We are interrogating him about these links and about his money.”