Is S Sreesanth a terrorist? Is he a criminal? Is ‘spot-fixing’ a crime? Is he a Sanjay Dutt? Should Sreesanth be tried under sections 3 and 4 of Maharashtra Control of Organized Crime Act (MCOCA)? These are important questions, because we are in danger of slipping into a police state, where an accused person has few options to prove his innocence. MCOCA takes away one’s right to be on bail. As per the act, anything that the police claim as confessions to a superintendent of police (SP) level officer in writing or recording will be admissible before a court of law.

What is applicable for Sreesanth also holds true for the two other Rajasthan Royals cricketers, Ankeet Chavan and Ajit Chandila. As of now, for me, Sreesanth is a cricketer who has erred grievously. Delhi Police till last Tuesday (June 4) had charged him with cheating offence Under IPC 420. Under Indian Penal Code, there is no such offence called ‘spot-fixing.’

Of course, Sreesanth has committed a mistake. With a sense of drama, which is richly deserving in this case, you can say Sreesanth has betrayed cricket. Sreesanth’s crime is that he broke the agreement he had with his IPL franchise Rajasthan Royals and the BCCI, the owners of IPL, by indulging in ‘spot-fixing’ and thereby besmirching the reputation of IPL and cricket.

Sreesanth has done something that is indefensible, going by the Delhi Police’s initial argument, that he took money from bookies and bowled as per their instructions. If it is so, it is an act that is unpardonable by a cricket enthusiast. It is nothing more. And I presume Delhi police, too, know this aspect of the case, including police commissioner Neeraj Kumar.

If that is so, why are the police applying MCOCA against Sreesanth and other accused? Delhi Police claim that they have concrete evidence that Sreesanth and other cricketers arrested were acting at the command of underworld dons Dawood Ibrahim and Chhota Shakeel.

The police are yet to completely establish the Sreesanth money trail, having recovered only Rs 5.5 lakh, though they claim that Sreesanth had taken Rs 40 lakh from the bookies. Delhi Police so far have not leaked any information to reporters saying that they have Sreesanth on tape, to prove his nexus with bookies. During the initials days of the euphoria, Delhi Police claimed that Sreesanth had confessed to having indulged in spot-fixing. Sreesanth’s counsels have denied any such thing, which in fact is nothing but par for the course.

The fact remains that the honourable magistrate court in Delhi so far has denied bail to Sreesanth but granted bail for one of the cricketers charged with a similar offence, Ankeet Chavan, to get married. Sreesanth who was arrested on May 15, as of now will remain in judicial custody (Tihar jail) till June 18 along with the 22 others. When his bail application comes up before the court on Friday (June 7), and with the police pressing for charges under MCOCA, it will seriously hurt the cricketer’s chances to walk free on bail.

Does Sreesanth, and the two other cricketers, deserve such a twisted fate? Punish these young men, after having established their crime, by all means. All one says is that the punishment should be based on what they did rather than on police fantasies. It would be prudent to remember that none of these cricketers are traitors. They are not ‘desh drohies’ to be condemned without a fair opportunity to enjoy all that freedom of the law allows them. Sreesanth is no Afzal Guru, leave alone, an Ajmal Kasab.