Ex-India captain Azharuddin appears before ED in HCA money laundering case

Former Indian cricket team captain and Congress leader Mohammed Azharuddin Tuesday appeared before the Enforcement Directorate (ED) in a money laundering case linked to alleged financial irregularities in the Hyderabad Cricket Association, official sources said.

The federal agency will question him and record his statement under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA), the sources said.

The 61-year-old former Member of Parliament was asked to first depose before the agency at its office here on Fateh Maidan Road on October 3 but he sought a fresh date and was hence summoned on October 8.

The probe is related to alleged financial irregularities in the Hyderabad Cricket Association (HCA) in which the ED had conducted searches in November last year.

Azharuddin's role during his tenure as the HCA president is under the scanner of the agency, the sources had said.

There was no immediate response from the former Indian skipper, who unsuccessfully contested the assembly polls held last year.

Following the registration of the case by the Telangana police last year, he had said that the allegations levelled against him were "false" and "motivated" and it was "just a stunt" pulled by his rivals to ruin his reputation.