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Pics don’t give the real picture: Pak umpire Asad Rauf

Didn’t have physical relation with her, didn’t promise her marriage, says Rauf.

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Pakistan umpire Asad Rauf, who is in the eye of a ‘sexual’ storm, has said his lawyers will deal with the allegations levelled against him by a Mumbai-based model. Speaking to DNA from Lahore on Wednesday, the International Cricket Council’s (ICC) elite panel umpire said he is not afraid of coming to India. “Whenever professional requirements arise, I will be there in India. I have no fears,” Rauf told this paper, while refuting the possibility of him being caught in legal complications in case he travelled to this country. In an international career spanning 12 years, Rauf officiated in five Tests and 10 ODIs in India. Besides, he is a regular feature in the Indian Premier League (IPL), having stood in about 37 matches.

Model Leena Kapoor has alleged sexual exploitation against him and filed a complaint in Mumbai stating that he has reneged on his promise to marry her. “I’ve no time for my first marriage. I’m a widely-travelled busy international umpire. My wife complains that I don’t spend enough time with my family. I’m already 56. So, where is the question of me making a promise to a 21-year-old model,” he remarked.

The model has flaunted picture of them in cosy poses, but Rauf said pictures do not prove her charges. “We come across so many fans and get pictures clicked. Pictures are no proof of  sexual relationships,” he stated, while denying the charge of having spent time at her Four Bungalows residence when he was in Mumbai during the IPL this year. “I’ve never done that. During matches, I stay in my hotel and don’t go out. These charges are not only untrue but also baseless.”

Rauf said he saw sinister designs in Kapoor’s allegations and the timing of them. “She wants to be embroiled in a controversy, so that she can get into the Big Boss programme,” he alleged.
Kapoor lodged a complained with deputy commissioner of police Pratap Dighavkar’s office here in Bandra saying that Rauf had sexually exploited her on many occasions after their first meeting in Sri Lanka six months ago. She also has reportedly claimed that he introduced her to many people in Delhi as his wife.

Meanwhile, the ICC said it had nothing to do with these developments. “It is his personal matter and has nothing to do with the ICC,” Rauf is a well-respected umpire having officiated in 44 Tests, 95 ODIs and 17 T20Is. Rauf is likely to come to India during the India-England series early next year.
 

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