From national Heroes to Villains: Dingko Singh, Sreesanth, Rahul Sharma and more

Dingko Singh

Sports personalities are considered heroes of a nation. But over the years it has been seen that not all are worthy of the hero worship.

Recently Asian Games gold medal winning boxer Dingko Singh of Manipur was allegedly arrested for physically assaulting a female weight lifter at Imphal.

The lady stated that he was assaulted by the boxer, for scribbling his name on his car’s dust-covered registration plate. She was brutally hit by Dingko with a stick. The miscreant used to be a coach of the Sports Authority of India (SAI), Imphal.

Such incidents are not new in India. In the past also we have seen several cases, where an Indian sports personality has been arrested for his or her wrongdoing.

Here is a list of such sportspersons who have been arrested in the past.

1. Shanthakumaran Sreesanth

This Indian fast bowler was arrested last year during the IPL on the grounds of match-fixing and spot-fixing in as many as three matches; Sreesanth was playing for IPL side Rajasthan Royals. The speedster was arrested from a friend’s place in Mumbai. His contract was terminated by his franchise and the BCCI suspended him for lifetime. Sreesanth had been sent to the Tihar Jail in Delhi, before he was released on bail.

2. Ajit Chandila

Another miscreant in the above mentioned scandal, Ajit Chandila too was arrested from Mumbai. Chandila was booked under the provisions of the Maharashtra Control of Organised Crime Act (MCOCA). The court, while granting bail to the cricketer said, his connection with the alleged organised syndicate was too remote.

3. Ankeet Chavan

Ankeet was the third member of the Rajasthan Royals trio that was involved in the spot-fixing scandal during last year’s IPL. Chavan also followed his partner in crime, S. Sreesanth to the Tihar Jail. But he was released early, keeping in mind his forthcoming wedding.

‘Royal trio’

4. Rahul Sharma

The Indian leg-spin bowler, who also played for Pune Warriors India in the IPL, was arrested in 2012 from Mumbai for allegedly consuming drugs at a rave party and was tested positive. Sharma was later released on bail. He was accompanied by fellow PWI player and South African fast bowler Wayne Parnell in the wrongdoing.

‘Rave Rahul’

5. Pinki Pramanik

The 2006 Asian Games gold medallist was arrested in 2012 in West Bengal after she had allegedly tortured and attempted to rape a woman. Pramanik was charged under sections 376 (rape), 417 (impersonation), 420 (cheating), 325 (assault), 506 (intimidation) and 493 (cohabitation caused by a man deceitfully inducing a belief of a lawful marriage). She later went through a gender test, which proved that she was a male.

Pinki Pramanik