A shocker to friends and kin of Sreesanth

June 05, 2013 02:21 am | Updated June 07, 2016 04:17 am IST - KOCHI:

The Delhi Police’s decision to invoke the Maharashtra Control of Organised Crime Act (MCOCA) against the former Indian pacer S. Sreesanth, an accused in the IPL spot-fixing scandal, has jolted the cricketer’s friends and relatives who were expecting to see him out on bail on Tuesday.

The invocation of MCOCA effectively dashed Sreesanth’s hope of getting bail and the Delhi court, where he was produced on Tuesday, further extended his judicial custody. Rebecca John, counsel for Sreesanth, minced no words while criticising the Delhi Police’s decision. “MCOCA is a draconian Act, the provisions of which are completely inapplicable to the facts and circumstances of the present case. There is no organised crime involved in this case,” Ms. John told The Hindu over the phone.

She accused the Delhi Police of invoking the provisions of the Act to defeat Sreesanth’s right to get bail. “The Delhi Police’s position in this matter is completely untenable,” the senior Supreme Court lawyer said.

Dipu Santhan, who is in Delhi to handle his brother’s case, was devastated by the development.

Sreesanth’s parents, shocked as they were, spent much time in a temple on Tuesday evening and hence were not available for comment. Jayan Thekkedath, a close friend and a member of the Ernakulam Cricket Club for which the cricketer had played for, who is also in Delhi, alleged that the move was part of a larger design to deny Sreesanth bail.

0 / 0
Sign in to unlock member-only benefits!
  • Access 10 free stories every month
  • Save stories to read later
  • Access to comment on every story
  • Sign-up/manage your newsletter subscriptions with a single click
  • Get notified by email for early access to discounts & offers on our products
Sign in

Comments

Comments have to be in English, and in full sentences. They cannot be abusive or personal. Please abide by our community guidelines for posting your comments.

We have migrated to a new commenting platform. If you are already a registered user of The Hindu and logged in, you may continue to engage with our articles. If you do not have an account please register and login to post comments. Users can access their older comments by logging into their accounts on Vuukle.