Abishek Porel Arrested Under Rape Charges

Abishek Porel represents DC in the IPL | PC- AFP

In a massive development, the 23-year-old Abishek Porel has been arrested in West Bengal's Hooghly district over rape allegations. 

The left-handed wicketkeeper-batter represents his state team quite consistently and has been associated with the IPL franchise, Delhi Capitals, since the 2023 season.

Earlier in June, a dental student lodged a complaint against the 23-year-old cricketer alleging that he engaged in a sexual relationship under the false promise of marriage and subjected her to assault and criminal intimidation.

Although Porel had publicly denied the accusations earlier, the Dum Dum police station, under the Calcutta High Court's directive, have arrested the cricketer.

Why is Abishek Porel arrested?

On Tuesday, the Justice Saugata Bhattacharyya of the Calcutta High Court directed the police officials to continue efforts to trace and arrest Abishek Porel.

He has been arrested under Sections 64(1), 66, 69, 74, 75(2), 79, 115(2), 117(2), 124(1), 127(2), 109, 308(2), 351(2), 351(3), 316(2), 318(3), 61(2) and 3(5) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, along with Sections 66E and 72 of the Information Technology Act, according to the police.

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The case against Porel first came into the limelight earlier this year in June, before it was fast-tracked in July, when the court asked the police to detain all the accused's electronic devices, before scheduling the next hearing on August 11.

Fast forward to one month later, the High Court found the cricketer guilty.

Will Abishek Porel play in IPL 2027?

Abishek Porel has been with DC from IPL 2023 till the recently concluded season. However, his future with the franchise and in the IPL has come under dark clouds after the sexual assault case against him.

Although the cricketer may and will contest his case, the BCCI and the IPL governing body have strict rules. Any player with a criminal record gets suspended from the IPL immediately. 

Thus, if he fails to find a way to drop charges against him in the near future, his chances of playing the IPL 2027 are almost over. 

That said, during the IPL 2026 season, RCB’s Yash Dayal was accused of serious allegations against him, which led the franchise to drop the left-arm seamer from their squad for the season. However, no criminal charges were filed against Dayal; thus, he wasn’t banned from the IPL.  

Notable cricketers involved in sexual assault cases

Abhishek Porel and Yash Dayal are prominent names accused in such cases. However, there have been plenty of other cricketers who have damaged cricket’s legacy.

Sri Lanka’s Danushka Gunathilaka was arrested in Australia in 2022 for sexual assualt. Whereas Makhaya Ntini and Alex Hepburn were also convicted. Nepal’s captain Sandeep Lamichanne was alleged to have committed rape, but he was later acquitted due to lack of evidence. 

Also Read: Indian Cricketers Who Have Been Booked In Criminal Cases Linked To Women In Last 5 Years