Raina held in Mumbai nightclub raid for violating COVID curb, out on bail

Former India all-rounder Suresh Raina “regrets the unfortunate and unintentional incident”, his management team said in a statement on Tuesday (December 22) after the player was arrested for violating COVID-19 norms at a club in Mumbai.

The Chennai Super Kings (CSK) player was among the 34 persons arrested by the Mumbai police during a raid on a nightclub in Andheri at 3 am. He was later released on bail.

“Party (Nahin) Chalegi Till Six In The Morning! A raid was conducted at a nightclub in Andheri at around 3 am, for flouting COVID prevention norms. Action has been initiated against 34 people, out of which 19 were from Delhi & Punjab, including some celebrities #NewNormal (sic),” Mumbai Police said in a tweet.

According to police, the club was operating beyond the permissible time limit which was 11:30 pm. Also, those present at the club were not following social distancing norms during the pandemic.

Later, Raina’s management team said the Uttar Pradesh cricketer was “not aware of the local timings and protocols”. It added that he was there at the club for a “quick dinner”.

“Suresh was in Mumbai for a shoot which extended to late hours and was invited by a friend for a quick dinner post the same prior to him taking his flight back to Delhi. He was not aware of the local timings and protocols,” the statement said.

“Once pointed out, he immediately complied with the procedures laid out by the authorities and regrets the unfortunate and unintentional incident. He always holds rules and laws laid down by governing bodies with the highest regard and will continue to do so in the future as well,” it added.

The 34-year-old Raina retired from international cricket on August 15, the same day when MS Dhoni quit the game. Later, he was set to play in IPL 2020 but pulled out of the Twenty20 tournament due to personal reasons.