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51 booked for organizing unauthorized cricket match
Police booked 51 people on Friday for allegedly organising and participating in a cricket match in Greater Noida at a time when government orders prohibited such
Police booked 51 people on Friday for allegedly organising and participating in a cricket match in Greater Noida at a time when government orders prohibited such outdoor activities in view of the Covid-19 pandemic.
According to police, they had got a tip of people gathering at a ground near an engineering college in Knowledge Park 3 following a team arrived at the spot around 2pm.
“Some people fled, while several others, including the organisers, were taken in to custody and their vehicles were challaned,” said a police officer from the Knowledge Park police station.
The organisers were identified as Delhi residents, Deepak Agarwal and Nagik Khurana, both in their 30s nd run a cricket academy and an online application for budding cricketers. Police said that the match was part of a tournament among corporate houses scheduled to take place over the next week and included players from other states like Haryana and Punjab as well.
“A total of 51 people were brought down to the Knowledge Park police station and booked while 17 vehicles in which they had come to the ground were challaned,” said deputy commissioner of police, zone 3, Rajesh Kumar Singh.
He said that the match was a violation of the current Covid-19 prevention guidelines and Indian Penal Code section 144 (prohibit gathering of four or more people) imposed in the district. The organisers did not have any permission for the match and most of them were not even wearing masks, said police.
The suspects were booked under sections 188 (disobedience to order duly promulgated by public servant), 269 (negligent act likely to spread infection of disease dangerous to life) and 270 (malignant act likely to spread infection of disease dangerous to life) of the Indian Penal Code and relevant sections of the Epidemic Act.
For violating section 144, a suspect is booked and then released on bail. It is in force in the district till July 31/
In view of the pandemic, all political, cultural, religious, or sports events had been barred. District police has challaned more than 7500 people for violations since the beginning of the lockdown on March 25.
