Indian cricketer dropped following attempted murder charges

Indian cricketer Mohammed Shami has had his professional contract put on hold by the Board of Control for Cricket (BCCI) in India after he was charged by Kolkata Police on Friday.

The Times of India are reporting that Kolkata Police booked India pace bowler Mohammed Shami and four others under various non-bailable and bailable sections after his wife Hasin Jahan lodged a complaint of domestic violence and infidelity against the cricketer. The Times report that the case was registered under non-bailable sections 307 (attempt to murder), 498-A (subjecting a woman to cruelty) and 376 (punishment for rape), while all five have been booked under bailable sections 323 (causing hurt) and 506 (criminal intimidation) among others. Shami denies the accusations and claims that the complaints are all part of a big conspiracy against him. "What is being said about my personal life is completely false," he wrote on Twitter on Wednesday, in a tweet that has since been deleted. "It's definitely a part of a big conspiracy against me. This is just an attempt to defame me." Vinod Rai, chairman of a BCCI supervisory committee, conceded that the allegations against Shami had left the board in a position where they had to suspend him from the list of contracted players. "We are in a bit of Catch 22," Vinod Rai, chairman of the committee, told cricket website ESPNcricinfo. "Ordinarily you would distinguish and say that is a personal issue and the contract is a professional issue. "But someone could easily point out and say this allegation is an unsavoury one and you are still rewarding him."