Shoaib Malik denies match-fixing claims in BPL, says left league after speaking to Tamim
Dhaka, Jan 26: Former Pakistan skipper Shoaib Malik has vehemently refuted allegations of match-fixing in the Bangladesh Premier League and unsubstantiated claims that his contract with Fortune Barishal was terminated.
The rumours stemmed from social media handles insinuating that Malik's contract with the franchise was terminated due to suspicions of match-fixing.
The speculation arose after he bowled three no-balls in the opening over during a match against Khulna Tigers on January 22.
Despite the allegations, Malik went on to play another game for the franchise before the Dhaka leg of BPL 2024 concluded.
"I want to emphasise the importance of exercising caution when it comes to rumours, especially those circulating recently," Malik wrote in his 'X' account.
"I want to make it clear that I strongly refute these baseless rumuors. It's crucial for everyone to verify information before believing and spreading it.
"Falsehoods can harm reputations and create unnecessary confusion. Let's prioritise accuracy and rely on credible sources to ensure a clear understanding of the facts. Thank you for your understanding and diligence," he added.
Malik also clarified that he had a discussion with the team captain, Tamim Iqbal, and together, they planned his temporary departure from Bangladesh for a "pre-committed media engagement in Dubai."
"I had to leave Bangladesh for a pre-committed media engagement in Dubai. I extend my best wishes to Fortune Barishal for their upcoming matches, and if needed, I am available to support them if needs be," he added.
Malik also posted a video featuring the owner of Fortune Barishal Mizanur Rahman dismissing the reports of match-fixing.
Official statement ;
— Shoaib Malik 🇵🇰 (@realshoaibmalik) January 26, 2024
I would like to address and dismiss the recent rumors circulating about my playing position with Fortune Barishal. I had a thorough discussion with our captain, Tamim Iqbal, and we mutually planned the way forward. I had to leave Bangladesh for a… pic.twitter.com/kmPqPt1nxv
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Actress sexual assault: Court says Prosecution 'miserably' failed to prove conspiracy against Dileep
Kochi (PTI): The prosecution had "miserably" failed to prove the conspiracy charge against Dileep in the sensational 2017 actress sexual assault case, a local court has observed while citing inconsistencies and lack of sufficient evidence against the Malayalam star.
The full judgement of Ernakulam District and Principal Sessions Court Judge Honey M Varghese was released late on Friday, and has revealed the judge also pointing out at unsustainable arguments put forth by the prosecution.
"The prosecution miserably failed to prove the conspiracy between accused No.1 (Pulsar Suni) and accused No.8 (Dileep) in executing the offence against the victim," the court held.
It examined in detail, the prosecution's allegation that Dileep had hired the prime accused to sexually assault the survivor and record visuals, including close-up footage of a gold ring she was wearing, to establish her identity.
On page 1130 of the judgment, under paragraph 703, the court framed the issue as whether the prosecution's contention that NS Sunil (Pulsar Suni) recorded visuals of the gold ring worn by the victim at the time of the occurrence, so as to clearly disclose her identity, was sustainable.
The prosecution contended Dileep and Suni had planned the recording so that the actress' identity would be unmistakable, with the video of the gold ring intended to convince Dileep that the visuals were genuine.
However, the court noted that this contention was not stated in the first charge sheet and was introduced only in the second one.
As part of this claim, a gold ring was seized after the victim produced it before the police.
The court observed that multiple statements of the victim were recorded from February 18, 2017, following the incident, and that she first raised allegations against Dileep only on June 3, 2017.
Even on that day, nothing was mentioned about filming of the ring as claimed by the prosecution, the court said.
The prosecution failed to explain why the victim did not disclose this fact at the earliest available opportunities.
It further noted that although the victim had viewed the sexual assault visuals twice, she did not mention any specific recording of the gold ring on those occasions, which remained unexplained.
The court also examined the approvers' statements.
One approver told the magistrate that Dileep had instructed Pulsar Suni to record the victim's wedding ring.
The court observed that no such wedding ring was available with her at that time.
During the trial, the approver changed his version, the court said.
The Special Public Prosecutor put a leading question to the approver on whether Dileep had instructed the recording of the ring, after which he deposed that the instruction was to record it to prove the victim's identity.
The court observed that the approver changed his account to corroborate the victim's evidence.
When the same question was put to another approver, he repeated the claim during the trial but admitted he had never stated this fact before the investigating officer.
The court noted that the second approver even went to the extent of claiming Dileep had instructed the execution of the crime as the victim's engagement was over.
This showed that the evidence of the second approver regarding the shooting of the ring was untrue, as her engagement had taken place after the crime.
The court further observed that the visuals themselves clearly revealed the victim's identity and that there was no need to capture images of the ring to establish identity.
In paragraph 887, the court examined the alleged motive behind the crime and noted that in the first charge sheet, the prosecution had claimed that accused persons 1 to 6 had kidnapped the victim with the common intention of capturing nude visuals to extort money by threatening to circulate them and there was no mention about Dileep's role in it.
The court also rejected the prosecution's claim that the accused had been planning the assault on Dileep's instructions since 2013, noting that the allegation was not supported by reliable evidence.
It similarly ruled out the claim that Suni attempted to sexually assault the victim in Goa in January 2017, stating that witness statements showed no such misconduct when he served as the driver of the vehicle used by the actress there.
The court also discussed various controversies that followed Dileep's arrest and the evidence relied upon by the prosecution, ultimately finding that the case had not been proved.
Pronouning its verdict on the sensational case on December 8, the court acquitted Dileep and three others.
Later, the court sentenced six accused, including the prime accused Suni, to 20 years' rigorous imprisonment.
The assault on the multilingual actress, after the accused allegedly forced their way into her car and held it under their control for two hours on February 17, 2017, had shocked Kerala.
Pulsar Suni sexually assaulted the actress and video recorded the act with the help of the other convicted persons in the moving car.
