HC notice to Sreesanth in IPL-6 spot-fixing case

Delhi High Court today sought the responses of suspended cricketers S Sreesanth, Ajit Chandila and Ankeet Chavan and 33 others on a plea by the city police challenging their discharge by a trial court in the 2013 IPL-6 spot fixing scandal case. Justice Siddharth Mridul issued notice to all the 36 respondents who were given a clean chit by the trial court on July 25 and sought their replies by December 16, the next date of hearing.

The high court also called for the trial court records on the appeal filed by Delhi Police which had moved the appeal on September 2. The trial court’s verdict had said the investigators had failed to gather “all necessary ingredients to establish a prima facie case” under the stringent Maharashtra Control of Organised Crime Act (MCOCA).

The trial court had dropped all charges against the 36 accused, including some bookies, holding that the Special Cell of Delhi Police had been unable to establish any “nexus” or link between them and crime syndicate allegedly run by fugitive underworld don Dawood Ibrahim and his close aide Chhota Shakeel, who, along with one Sandeep, were declared proclaimed offenders in the case. Three other accused, Javed Chutani, Salman and Ehtesham -- are Pakistani nationals and the police could not lay their hands on them.

The appeal contended that the trial court order was unsustainable. The Delhi Police has argued the conclusions put forth for discharging the accused was not correct. It contended that the trial court had erred in interpreting the provisions of MCOCA dealing with crime syndicates.