Non-Bailable Warrant Against MS Dhoni Over Lord Vishnu Photo

Anantpur Court issues NBW for MS Dhoni in controversial magazine cover issue; hearing adjourned to February 25.

Indian Skipper Mahendra Singh Dhoni. (Photo: Business Today Cover)

An Anantapur District Court in Andhra Pradesh has issued a non-bailable warrant against Mahendra Singh Dhoni, on Friday, in relation to a case filed against him for “hurting Hindu sentiments”.

The court has summoned the captain of India’s ODI and T20 cricket team on 25 February.

Indian Skipper Mahendra Singh Dhoni. Photo: Reuters

Dhoni’s lawyer has, however, denied the reports of summons against him, calling the court order “erroneous”.

<p>Mahendra Singh Dhoni has the utmost respect for the judiciary but the fact of the matter is that he has personally never received any summons with respect to the present case, therefore, the order appears to be erroneous.<br></p>

<b>Rajneesh Chopra, Mahendra Singh Dhoni’s Lawyer</b>

The petition was filed by the Vishwa Hindu Parishad (VHP). The VHP’s Anantapur district vice-president, Yerraguntla Shyamsunder, had earlier alleged in a petition that the Indian captain had hurt the religious sentiments of Hindus by dressing up and posing as Lord Vishnu for a magazine.

Several criminal cases were filed against Dhoni across the country for posing as Lord Vishnu on the cover of the Business Today magazine in its June 3, 2013, edition. The Anantapur court had also summoned the magazine editor Chaitanya Kalbag with regard to the case filed under Section 295 A of the IPC.

The petition also asked Dhoni and the magazine’s editor to apologise. The Supreme Court had earlier stayed criminal proceedings against the cricketer on a complaint lodged for the same issue in a Bengaluru trial court.