NEW DELHI: Punjab Kings cricketer Shashank Singh has broken his silence after an FIR was registered against him, his father Shailesh Singh and their driver following the domestic cook’s allegations of assault, verbal abuse and forceful seizure of his mobile phone.According to an IANS report, the Ratibad police in Bhopal have registered a case under Sections 296(B), 115(2) and 3(5) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS). The police have launched an investigation into these allegations. The complainant, Vipendra Singh Tomar, a resident of Madhya Pradesh’s Rewa district, told the police that on June 25, he had joined work as a cook at the Singh family’s bungalow in Neelbad. He claimed that he was promised a monthly salary of Rs 15,000 along with food and accommodation.Responding to the allegations, Shashank denied that he or his family assaulted or held the complainant against his will.“No, we did not hold him hostage,” Shashank told ANI.“It’s true that he arrived claiming to be a cook, but he wasn’t a cook at all. He didn’t know how to cook; he was just here to have fun, filming and taking pictures, and even entering my room. Because he did things like that, I suspected he came with the intention of stealing. We’re very lucky that, from what we’ve checked, nothing was stolen.”The Punjab Kings batsman also explained why the appellant’s phone was taken.“It’s true that his phone contained videos and photos of the house, so my mother made him delete them because they were very private.”Shashank further claimed that the police have not contacted him so far and said that they were thinking of calling the police themselves.“The police have not spoken to us so far. When we caught him taking photos and filming, my sister suggested we turn 100. But he begged and I let him go.”Rejecting the allegations of assault and molestation, Shashank said:“It is possible that someone will throw such accusations at me. I believe that anyone who knows me knows that physical confrontation is completely out of the question for me. I hesitate even to swear, I certainly could not do something like that. I don’t think I need to offer any justification about that.”According to the FIR, Tomar claimed that he agreed to work at the residence after he was provided with salary, food and accommodation.“I agreed to work there and stayed in the home after they provided me with salary, food and accommodation,” Tomar stated in the complaint.Tomar claimed that he was later told that there was an error in the work and that his mobile phone was confiscated.According to the complaint, the matter escalated on June 28 when he asked for his phone back.“After I prepared breakfast, I asked Shailesh Singh to return my mobile but he refused. Upset over this, I went to my room,” Tomar stated.He further stated that Shailesh Singh, Shashank Singh and their driver entered his room and assaulted him.“They abused me and started attacking me with their hands and fists. After beating me, they kicked me out of the house,” Tomar stated in his statement to the police.The complainant also alleged that Rs 1,000 was transferred from his mobile phone and the accused claimed that the amount was deducted for food and accommodation expenses.The case is currently under police investigation.
