Cops challenge discharge of all accused in spot-fixing case

Delhi Police has cited 38 points in its review petition filed in Delhi High Court challenging trial court's decision discharging all accused including cricketers S Sreesanth, Ajit Chandila and Ankeet Chavan, in the sensational 2013 IPL-6 spot-fixing case.
In its review petition, the Delhi Police has contended that the trial court had erroneously interpreted the law pertaining to MCOCA and its order was unsustainable.
"If the reasoning given by the Learned Special Judge is accepted, it would be quite easy for a syndicate to commit organized crime while sitting outside Delhi through their associates or take shelter or generate wealth outside Delhi after committing the offence within the limits of Delhi.

"Thus, the learned Special Court has also failed to appreciate the fact that the nature of 'organized crime' includes within its ambit inter-state offences as well," the review petition said.
Trial judge, while discharging all the accused, had said the case "did not satisfy the mandatory requirement provided under Section 2(1)(d) of MCOC Act for the offences to qualify as 'continuing unlawful activity'."
"Continuing unlawful activity", under MOCOCA, means an activity prohibited by law for the time being in force, which is a cognizable offence punishable with imprisonment of three years or more, undertaken either singly or jointly, as a member of an organised crime syndicate or on behalf of such, syndicate in respect of which more than one charge-sheets have been field before a competent Court within the preceding period of ten years.

The trial judge Neena Bansal Krishna had also said that match fixing and concealment of the fact by a player of receiving money from punters and book-makers cannot be termed as cheating as the same does not prove an intention to cause wrongful loss to the spectators.