'Modi and Clarke should be sued for not just hurting the players, but "scarring their innocent children who now have to face questions and shame for no fault of theirs.'
Former cricketer S Sreesanth's wife Bhuvneshwari Sreesanth lashed out at ex-Indian Premier League (IPL) commissioner Lalit Modi and former Australian batter Michael Clarke for revealing the never-seen-before footage of the infamous 'Slapgate' scandal involving Harbhajan Singh and her husband.
Pointing out how both players have moved on from the incident, she termed Modi-Clarke's act as "disgusting, heartless and inhuman".
Modi and Clarke publicised the controversial clip during the latest episode of Aussie legend's Beyond23 Cricket Podcast.
The incident, one of the IPL's darkest chapters, took place in 2008 following an encounter between Mumbai Indians and the Punjab Kings (then Kings XI Punjab), which the latter won by 66 runs.
In the footage, Harbhajan could be seen slapping the pacer with the back of his hand during the post-match handshakes. Though the exact reason for the altercation was never revealed, it was widely speculated that Sreesanth might have said something offensive to the off-spinner.
Taking to Instagram, Bhuvneshwari wrote, "Shame on you @lalitkmodi and @michaelclarkeofficial. You people are not even human to drag up something from 2008 just for your own cheap publicity and views. Both @sreesanthnair36 and Harbhajan have long moved on, they are fathers now with school-going children, and yet you try to throw them back into an old wound. Absolutely disgusting, heartless, and inhuman."
In another story, she lamented that the latest footage deeply disturbed her family and added that both Modi and Clarke should be sued for not just hurting the players, but "scarring their innocent children who now have to face questions and shame for no fault of theirs."
During the podcast, Modi revealed that broadcast cameras did not record the incident as they were switched off after the match and it was one of his personal security cameras which captured Harbhajan giving Sreesanth a backhander.
"I had kept that video. The game was over, and the cameras had shut off. One of my security cameras was on because I was walking in the field. It was caught as the teams finished playing. The players were going thanking each other and shaking hands. One team was going one way, the other team was going the other way, and then it came down to Sreesanth and Bhajji. Bhajji just looks at him, said something, and gave him a backhander. I had not put it out for so long - it has been 18 years now," said Modi as quoted by Wisden.
Harbhajan was suspended for the remainder of the season and was banned for eleven matches.
"I sat them both down afterwards and had to penalise Bhajji in the meeting. He received an eight-match suspension, although some people were calling for a lifetime suspension. It was a new league with lots of passion, but I found it offensive. It was not just about Bhajji or Sreesanth; we needed to set an example, we needed to set boundaries," Modi said.
Recently, Harbhajan, who is now active in commentary and punditry, had reflected on the incident on Ravichandran Ashwin's YouTube Channel, saying, "One thing I'd want to change in my life is that incident with Sreesanth. I want to remove that incident from my career. What transpired was wrong, and I should not have done what I did. I apologised 200 times. What I felt so bad about was that even years after that incident, I have been apologising every opportunity or stage I get. It was a mistake."
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