Enforcement Directorate to probe IPL's foreign deals

Even as the income tax (IT) department is probing the financial dealings of the money-spinning Indian Premier League
(IPL), the Enforcement Directorate (ED) will look into the alleged murky international deals of the tournament.

Official sources said the Mumbai wing of the ED had conducted a discreet inquiry into the finances of Rajasthan Royals in 2008 and had prepared a report of alleged Foreign Exchange Management Act (FEMA) violations.

They said the report, prepared two years ago, will become the foundation of the probe that will cover all the franchises
of the cash-rich IPL tournament.

The directorate will also work in tandem with the IT department, which has already initiated its probe into the matter, especially into the dealings of IPL commissioner Lalit Modi. His relatives have stakes in some of the franchises.

Sources said the Kochi team, which too had investors based abroad, will also be brought under the scanner.

The ED comes into the picture because a good share of the foreign funding came routed through tax havens, they said.

With IPL facing heat over its dealings, the government today said "no guilty or wrong-doer" will be spared and all aspects including the sources and routes of funding of teams will be probed.