Raj Kundra Maintains Innocence, Tells NDTV That Suspension is Depressing
Raj Kundra has been suspended for life from all cricket-related activities. More importantly, Rajasthan Royals - a franchise of which he was a co-owner - has been suspended for two years alongwith Chennai Super Kings.
Raj Kundra has expressed his disappointment at being suspended for life from all cricket-related activities. The decision was made in a verdict announced by the Justice RM Lodha-led Supreme Court panel and has surprised the former co-owner of Rajasthan Royals, who broke his silence first to NDTV on Tuesday and said he has been pronounced guilty 'despite no evidence' against him.
In a highly-attended media conference at Delhi's India Habitat Centre, the three-judge panel, read out the punishments against Gurunath Meiyappan - former Team Principal of Chennai Super Kings - and Kundra for betting and "bringing the game into disrepute." The two franchises were also suspended for a period of two years. "Today is a very depressing and sad day for me as my integrity is being questioned," Kundra said. "Despite no evidence against me, I have been pronounced guilty. My support to the probe seems to have back-fired." (What's next for CSK and RR? BCCI mull options)
The Lodha panel acted on behalf of the BCCI disciplinary committee and its decisions although binding on the Board, will now have to be ratified by the governing body. Kundra - husband of Bollywood actress Shilpa Shetty - said that while he has respect for the judicial system, he is innocent and that the Rajasthan franchise has been treated harshly. "I am just a minority stakeholder of 11.7% in the (Rajasthan) franchise and its very unfair to penalize the full team and its players," he said.