Banned Cricket Boss Kundra Back With Indian Poker League Launch

(Photo: Guyana.hoop.la)

When London-born Raj Kundra received a lifetime ban from Indian cricketing matches for his illegal gambling activities in the Indian Premier League (IPL) it would have taken a brave man to bet on his return to the IPL only two years later – but the multi-millionaire businessman’s new venture, the Indian Poker League (also acronymed the IPL) is partly a 2 fingered salute to his former cricketing life.

“IPL just couldn’t keep me away, so I’m back,” Kundra told fellow investors, reporters and fans at the new poker league’s launch, his Bollywood superstar actress wife Shilpa Shetty once again at his side – just as she was when they both invested in the cricketing venture in 2009.

That ended badly for Kundra when an Indian Supreme Court-appointed panel suspended several teams and individuals after a spot-fixing gambling controversy, including Kundra and his Rajasthan Royals team, with Justice RM Lodha stating:

“As part owner having 11.7 per cent of the franchise, Kundra should have conducted himself in accordance of his stature. Betting is a crime punishable in India and it is corrupt practice against BCCI constitution.”

Spot-fixing, for those who don’t know the term, involves influencing the outcomes of parts of a match in exchange for money.

(Photo: Indianexpress.com)

And yet here he is, back again and this time with only ‘one agenda on their priority list,’ according to the IndianExpress.com news site: ‘to shake off the gambling stigma intrinsically associated with the card game’ – Kundra repeating the mantra throughout the press conference: poker and the new IPL ‘is not about gambling’.

“This is an ideal opportunity to put India on the global poker map,” said Kundra of the IPL launch, adding: “The winning team here will play as Team India at the World Cup.”

With the IPL so far being recognized by the International Federation of Poker (IFP), it would appear that Kundra has also secured a place for an Indian team in the Nations Cup, to be held in Oxford this December. The Indians first – and to date only - appearance so far at an IFP event, saw them finish 6th at the 2013 Asian Nations Cup in China.