Pakistani cricketer Shoaib Malik, who has been accused by an Indian woman of marrying and dumping her without a formal divorce, has approached a criminal lawyer who had fought a case for former Indian all-rounder Manoj Prabhakar.
Shoaib has approached 60-year-old New Delhi-based lawyer Ramesh Gupta to fight his case.
Gupta, who has a chamber in New Delhi's Patiala House court complex, is a former chairman of the Bar Council of Delhi. Apart from being Prabhakar's lawyer, he has also appeared as the defence lawyer in high-profile cases like the BMW hit-and-run case and the Rahul Mahajan drug overdose case.
"I defended Prabhakar's case against his wife (Sandhya), which ultimately reached a compromise stage" The Nation quoted Gupta, as saying.
"I received a phone call from Shoaib Malik's brother-in-law (Imran Zafar) on Saturday and he is reaching here (in New Delhi) in the next 48 hours. The case will then be discussed, " he added.
Gupta further said that at the moment he is not in a position to comment on the case.
"At this stage, when both parties (Ayesha Siddiqi and Shoaib Malik) are issuing contrasting statements, nothing can be said, but a compromise formula can always be worked out.
The Siddiqis claim that Malik married their daughter Ayesha in 2002, but has not divorced her till date.
The Hyderabad-based family had also produced pictures of Shoaib-Ayesha's nikahnama (marriage certificate) that states that their marriage was solemnised on June 3, 2002.
Malik, on the other hand, has denied being married to Ayesha. He, however, admitted to talking to a girl named Ayesha over the telephone, but said he has never seen or met the girl.
"Even if they did so, it is not a legal binding on my client's part. I have consulted a few Muslim priests and obtained documents from them which also substantiate our claims of the marriage being illegal, " Gupta said.
On Monday, the police took the passport of Malik and asked him not to leave the country as they questioned him in the wake of a complaint of cheating, harassment and criminal intimidation lodged by Ayesha's father.
"As part of investigations, Shoaib's passport has been taken. We felt it necessary to check from the passport the veracity of her (Ayesha's) assertions that Shoaib Malik had visited Hyderabad during the alleged wedding period," Khan said.
Khan clarified that Shoaib's passport has not been confiscated or impounded. It has been taken to verify entries.
Asked when Shoaib would get back his passport, Khan made it clear that as of now it would remain with the Central Crime Station (CCS) - a wing of Hyderabad City Police, which has taken over investigations into the case.
Asked if Malik faces arrest, Khan said "If it becomes necessary to arrest somebody, we will do it but that is all based on how the case evolves and what sort of evidence we come across."
On Ayesha's claim that she had suffered a miscarriage after her marriage with Shoaib, Khan said the investigating officers will also look into this aspect to establish its veracity.
"Our concern is to establish the truth and putting it before the court," he said.
Reacting to queries if the investigation would be completed before April 15 (the day of proposed marriage between Shoaib and Sania Mirza), Khan said "we will go by the facts of the case and investigate."
"Now, we are in the process of collecting evidence and examining witnesses. At every stage, we will take legal help also and once the whole thing is completed, we will weigh the quality of evidences that we have and will decide what should be done with the case," Khan said.
Meanwhile the members and officials of the Pakistan cricket team that toured India in 2005 also jumped in Shoaib's support.
Former Test cricketer, Salim Altaf who was the manager of the team on that tour, said they had gone to attend the reception on the request of Shoaib Malik.
"Malik had told us that the Siddiqui's were his future in-laws and the parents of the girl he intended to marry soon," Altaf said.
"We went because of Malik but we never met anyone introduced to us as Ayesha Siddiqui," he said.
Pakistani opener, Imran Nazir also rejected claims by Ayesha that she had spoken to him over telephone and been introduced to him as Malik's wife.
"I don't know why she has given this statement. Malik is my close friend but I never spoke to his fiance over the phone," Nazir said.
"What she has said about me is absolutely wrong," he added.
Pakistan's T20 captain Shahid Afridi also supported Malik and said, "Since he has gone to India he must now bring his bride home."
But Shoaib has found support from not just fellow cricketers but also from leading hockey players like Rehan Butt, Sohail Abbas, Shakeel Abbasi, Ahmed Alam who feel Shoaib is being victimised in India.
"This is another instance of where the Indian media is holding a media trial of Malik without knowing the truth. He has gone there to marry an Indian girl and that is something they can't digest," Butt said.
Abbasi said Shoaib appeared to be in the right and if Ayesha had any evidence against him, she should come out herself and show it to the public.
Leading filmstars and television artists also felt that it was time the media left Shoaib and Sania alone.
"It is a personal matter involving Malik, Mirza and even Ayesha. It is something they have to resolve among themselves. Why spoil their happiness?" asked actor Saud.
Actress Meera feels given the media coverage even the Indian people were now supporting Shoaib.
"The way he is being portrayed in the Indian media, there is a lot of sympathy for him now," she said.
Amidst all the contradictions, there is also news doing rounds that proposed Sohiab-Sania marriage might be postponed.
In a chat with The Hindu, V Chamundeswaranath, former secretary of the Andhra Cricket Association and close friend of the Sania Mirza family said, “Let me make it clear that they have not decided to postpone officially but are keeping the options open."
“Given the way things have turned around since morning, it is apparent that Sania and her parents are clearly perturbed at the ‘media war' launched by the Ayesha Siddiqui family. The Mirzas are very particular that the wedding should take place in a much better mood and frame of mind,” he added.
