National level TT players under CBI scanner on age issue

Several national and state-level table tennis players have come under CBI scanner for allegedly participating in underage categories of competitions by producing manipulated age records.
The newly-constituted sports integrity unit of the agency has taken over the matter after receiving a complaint from a senior officer whose daughter missed out on one such competition because of alleged over-aged competitors, sources said.
The agency had registered a preliminary enquiry into the allegations of such fake certificates submitted by the paddlers and issued notices to players from West Bengal, they said.
The motive is to allegedly get scholarships and other benefits from the government, they said.

"It is alleged that several state and national level TT players manipulated their age proof documents so as to be able to play in the lower age category tournaments," a CBI official, heading the investigation, told PTI.
CBI has written to Table Tennis Federation of India seeking records of such tournaments and players and contacted two table tennis federations in West Bengal--West Bengal Table Tennis Association and North Bengal Table Tennis Association.

Vice-President of West Bengal Table Tennis Association Biswajit Mukherjee told PTI over phone that CBI had contacted them and sought documents which will be furnished soon to the agency.

He said about 40 players of his association have received notices from the agency in which they have been asked to furnish details of all competitions they have participated and the prize money won by them.
The CBI sources said the players have also been asked to furnish details of scholarships and other benefits received by them from the government on the basis of these competitions.