Kochi: Though the trial court acquitted Sreesanth in IPL betting case, he will have to look for an alternate remedy to come back to cricket.
Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) has already made it clear that the lifetime ban imposed on Sreesanth is not based on the criminal case pending against him but an independent one.
A BCCI release said, “Any disciplinary proceedings or decision taken by the BCCI is independent to any criminal proceedings and has no bearing. The decisions of the BCCI based on its independent disciplinary action shall remain unaltered”.
According to legal sources, Sreesanth will have to fight another legal battle if BCCI refrains from altering the life ban.
Interestingly, Kerala Cricket Association which took an initial stand that they will file an appeal before BCCI seeking to revoke his ban, also issued a press release stating the same.
According to sources, the newly formed BCCI Working Committee, which was appointed to study the Lodha Commission report, will have a major say in the speedster's future.
However, the acquittal by the Delhi’s Patiala House Court is a major blessing for Sree as chances of an appeal look bleak.
The court threw away the 6,000 page charge sheet filed by Delhi police which point to the failure on the part of the investigation team.
"I strongly believe that Delhi police will not challenge the verdict at higher courts. When I appeared for Sreesanth, I had argued that the incident didn't occur in Delhi so incorporation of Maharashtra Control of Organised Crime Act, 1999 (MCOCA) cannot be charged against Sreesanth. MCOCA is a law enacted by Maharashtra government in 1999 to combat organised crime and terrorism and the same was later extended to Delhi," senior lawyer K. Ramakumar said.
