Former India and Chennai Super Kings (CSK) captain MS Dhoni has been asked to deposit ₹10 lakh towards the cost of transcribing and translating compact discs submitted as evidence in his defamation suit related to the 2013 Indian Premier League (IPL) spot-fixing and betting scandal by the Madras High Court.
Justice R.N. Manjula said that translating and writing down the Hindi recordings — including news clips and TV debates — would be a very large task. It would need a full-time interpreter and typist for three to four months.
The court ruled that Dhoni, as the plaintiff, must pay for this work. The money must be deposited in the Chief Justice’s Relief Fund by March 12, 2026, so that the 12-year-old civil case can continue.
“As the engagement of official Interpreter is needed in view of the extraneous circumstances and as mentioned in the earlier order dated 28.10.2025, it is obligatory on the part of the plaintiff to pay the cost of the job done,” reads the order as per Bar and Bench.
The trial in the case was delayed for more than 12 years because both sides kept filing many petitions asking for different reliefs.
In December 2023, a Division Bench of Justices S.S. Sundar (who has since retired) and Sunder Mohan found the retired IPS officer guilty of criminal contempt of court and sentenced him to 15 days of simple imprisonment. However, in 2024, the Supreme Court put the punishment on hold.
Dhoni had filed the contempt petition against the retired IPS officer for making disrespectful remarks about the Supreme Court and the High Court while defending himself in the defamation case. In July 2022, then Advocate General R. Shunmugasundaram allowed the cricketer to proceed with the contempt case. He was satisfied that the statements made by Mr. Kumar in his written reply had insulted the court and damaged its dignity.
On August 11, 2025, Justice C.V. Karthikeyan ordered the trial to begin. He also appointed an advocate commissioner to record Mr. Dhoni’s evidence at a place convenient for both sides. The judge felt that asking the cricketer to appear in person at the Master’s Court inside the High Court could cause crowding and security problems because he is a celebrity.
Sampath Kumar challenged this order before a Division Bench of Justices S.M. Subramaniam and Mohammed Shaffiq. In November 2025, the Bench dismissed his appeal. The judges said that Dhoni’s presence at the High Court would require heavy security arrangements, so there was nothing wrong in appointing an advocate commissioner to record his evidence at another location.
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