Mitchell vows never to return to Pakistan; Curran was crying: PSL player recalls horrific experience
Dubai: Bangladesh leg-spinner Rishad Hossain has shared harrowing details of the tense atmosphere among international cricketers during the abrupt suspension of the Pakistan Super League (PSL) amid escalating tensions between India and Pakistan.
Speaking after landing safely in Dubai, Hossain described the situation as chaotic and emotionally distressing for many players. “Alhamdulillah, we have reached Dubai after overcoming a crisis, and I am feeling well now,” he said.
According to Hossain, fear gripped the foreign contingent when news broke of airport closures and the uncertain political situation. He recounted that England fast bowler Tom Curran was extremely distressed. "He went to the airport, but heard that the airport was closed. Then he started crying like a little child, that it took two or three people to handle him," Cricbuzz quoted Hossain as saying.
New Zealand’s Daryl Mitchell, also among the players evacuated, was reportedly so shaken by the experience that he told Hossain he would never return to Pakistan under such conditions. "Foreign players like Sam Billings, Daryl Mitchell, Kushal Perera, David Wiese, and Tom Curran were so frightened. Landing in Dubai, Mitchell told me that he would never go to Pakistan again, especially in this kind of scenario. Overall, they all were horrified," he added.
Hossain also revealed that Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) chairman Mohsin Naqvi initially planned to continue the tournament in Karachi. However, growing safety concerns raised by players reportedly led to a change in plans, prompting the evacuation of all international players to the UAE.
Let the Truth be known. If you read VB and like VB, please be a VB Supporter and Help us deliver the Truth to one and all.
Traffic fraud: Fake 'no-entry' sticker racket busted in Delhi, mastermind among 3 held
New Delhi (PTI): Police here have busted a crime syndicate involved in traffic fraud and extortion, arresting three people including the alleged mastermind who sold fake stickers to help commercial vehicles bypass no-entry restrictions, an official said on Saturday.
The police said they dismantled a third organised syndicate linked to traffic-related frauds, with the arrest of Rinku Rana alias Bhushan, his associate Sonu Sharma and Mukesh Kumar alias Pakodi, who was also connected to another extortion syndicate.
According to the police, Rinku Rana was running a well-organised network that facilitated the movement of commercial goods vehicles during restricted hours by selling fake 'marka' or stickers for Rs 2,000 to Rs 5,000 per vehicle every month. The stickers were falsely projected as authorisation to evade traffic challans.
During raids, the police recovered Rs 31 lakh in cash, property documents worth several crores of rupees, over 500 fake stickers and six mobile phones allegedly used to operate the syndicate.
The crackdown followed a complaint filed by a traffic police officer in April this year after a commercial vehicle tried to evade checking by producing a fake sticker claiming exemption from enforcement action.
Investigation revealed that social media groups were being used to coordinate the illegal movement of vehicles and alert drivers about traffic police checkpoints, police said.
"A parallel system was being run to cheat drivers and vehicle owners while undermining traffic enforcement. On the basis of evidence, provisions related to organised crime under the BNS were invoked," a senior police officer said.
Sonu Sharma, the police said, managed social media groups through which stickers were sold and real-time alerts were circulated regarding traffic police movement. He also acted as a link between Rana and drivers operating in the field.
In a related development, Mukesh Kumar alias Pakodi, an associate of Rajkumar alias Raju Meena, who was earlier arrested under the Maharashtra Control of Organised Crime Act (MCOCA), was also apprehended.
Mukesh allegedly helped extort money from transporters and was involved in blackmailing traffic police personnel by recording enforcement actions, the police said.
Investigators alleged the syndicate led by Rajkumar deployed drivers to deliberately violate traffic rules and secretly record police officials during challans, later using manipulated videos to extort money under threat of false allegations.
The police said that in total, eight accused belonging to three different organised crime syndicates linked to traffic frauds and extortion have been arrested so far.
Further investigation is underway to trace the remaining members, conduct financial probes, and analyse digital evidence recovered during the raids, officials added.
