Yuvraj Singh, family members booked in domestic violence case filed by his sister-in-law

Indian cricketer Yuvraj Singh was on Wednesday booked by the Gurugram Police in a case of domestic violence filed by his sister-in-law Akanksha Sharma. Singh, his brother Zoravar Singh and mother Shabnam Singh have been named in the case, according to reports.

Sharma, who was a contestant on the reality TV show Big Boss 10, filed the case in a Gurugram court. The southpaw’s family has been given till October 21 to respond to the allegations.

Sharma’s lawyer, Swati Singh Malik, said that Yuvraj Singh had asked her client to “obey” Shabnam Singh, and had also pressured her into having a baby. “She has filed an FIR where Yuvraj Singh has been named,” Malik was quoted as saying by entertainment website Spotboye. “Look, domestic violence does not mean just physical violence. It also means mental and financial torture, which can be attributed to Yuvraj.”

Malik added, “Yuvraj was a mute spectator to the suffering caused to my client by Zoravar and his mother. When Yuvraj and Zoravar’s mother was pressurising Akanksha to have a baby, Yuvraj too had joined in to do the same. He too told Akanksha ‘to have a baby’. He was hand-in-glove with his mother.” The lawyer also said that, according to Sharma, the cricketer would tell her that she must obey his mother “because she was the most superior person in the house”. “That lady is extremely dominant. Zoravar and Akanksha were at her mercy for every decision,” Malik claimed.

A local Sub-Divisional Magistrate or a woman police officer will investigate these allegations and a report will be sent to the concerned court, reported CNN News18. The court will then decide how to further investigate the matter.

‘Malafide, baseless and time barred’

In a statement on Wednesday, the counsel for Yuvraj, his mother and brother, Damanbir Singh Sobti, claimed the complaint was “malafide, baseless and time barred”.

“She (Akanksha) had left her matrimonial house admittedly in September, 2015 and has now chosen to file this petition in the end of 2017,” the family’s lawyer stated.

“Akanksha has filed a petition under Section 25 of the Protection of Women from Domestic Violence Act, 2005 and my clients have been arrayed as respondents and their counsel shall appear on their behalf on the date fixed before the court in Gurgaon,” Yuvraj’s lawyer said.