25 May 2013
Supporters and well-wishers of Sreesanth hold placards claiming his innocence. (Photo Courtesy: PTI)
Mumbai: The Mumbai crime branch on Monday grilled a Mumbai-based casting director who had sent emails, containing pictures and profiles of aspiring models and actresses, to S.Sreesanth who was arrested by the Delhi Police for his alleged involvement in the spot-fixing case.
The director claims that he had sent the pictures of the models for an ad film to be shot for the cricketer's Hyderabad-based company `S36'. However, the police is not buying these claims at face value and is exploring the angle of whether the girls were employed to lure the players into spot fixing. Police has now summoned the Hyderabad producer for further questioning.
“The company manufactures T-shirts, mineral water and other products. It is co-owned by Sreesanth and a Hyderabad-based film producer who is well known in the film industry down south,“ said an officer requesting anonymity.
Meanwhile, the plea of arrested Indian pacer S. Sreesanth that he be provided with a copy of the FIR of the IPL spot-fixing scandal case was on Monday disposed of by a Delhi court as his lawyer did not turn up to pursue it.
“No one present on behalf of the applicant (Sreesanth's advocate). The application is dismissed for non prosecution,” Metropolitan Magistrate Gaurav Rao said.
Sreesanth and two of his teammates of Rajasthan Royals franchise and 11 bookies were remanded to five days police custody on May 16.
On May 17, Sreesanth's lawyer had filed an application before the Chief Metropolitan Magistrate Lokesh Kumar Sharma, seeking a copy of the FIR to prepare his defence.
However, as the CMM did not hold the court on Monday, the matter was sent to another Metropolitan Magistrate who dismissed the plea of Sreesanth as his lawyer failed to appear to argue the application. Earlier, the CMM had allowed the lawyers of the cricketer and other accused to inspect the copy of the FIR.
Seeking seven days custody for accused, the police had told the court that Sreesanth and his IPL teammates Ajit Chandila and Ankit Chavan, who were arrested in Mumbai early this week, had placed bets and had taken money for every ball and every run in an over.
Sreesanth and two other cricketers were arrested in a post-midnight operation in Mumbai on May 16 by Delhi police for spot-fixing
in IPL matches for payments of upto `60 lakh for giving away pre-determined number of runs in an over.
Police alleged that the cricketers had indulged in spot-fixing in at least three IPL matches as per arrangements with bookies who have underworld connections abroad. The players, who have been suspended by the BCCI, have been booked under section 420 (cheating) and 120-B (criminal conspiracy) of the IPC.
