India international Raju Gaikwad detained for drunken brawl

Raju Gaikwad (R)

East Bengal and India defender Raju Gaikwad was detained by Bidhannager East police station in Kolkata for his involvement in a drunken brawl late on Friday night. Besides Raju, another footballer Subhodeep Goon was also detained by the police.

The incident comes two weeks after the arrest of East Bengal midfielder Jagpreet Singh following the rape charge of a minor. Jaspal Pamar, who has been released by East Bengal to play for another club for the rest of the season, and Prayag United’s Baldeep Singh were also accused but are still missing.

Gaikwad, who has also played for Indian Arrows (now Pailan Arrows) and is known for his long-throws, captained India U-23 at the 2012 Olympic qualifiers and has been part of the senior national team set up since the 2012 AFC Challenge Cup qualifiers in March 2011.

It remains to be seen what action East Bengal takes against Raju, who was omitted by coach Trevor Morgan from the 18-man squad for the match against Churchill Brothers. East Bengal have defended Jagpreet throughout and intend to help him in the legal proceedings also.