Sidhartha Mallya backs Luke, victim says she fears for life

It was a day of controversy at the Indian Premier League, but off the field. Royal Challengers Bangalore's Luke Pomersbach was arrested and released on bail for allegedly molesting a woman and beating up her fiancé.

Support for the cricketer came in from team owner Sidhartha Mallya, who in a controversial tweet, brought the woman's integrity into question. The complainant, who is a US citizen of Indian origin, later even said she fears for her life. There was also high drama inside the packed courtroom as the victim broke down while explaining the incident that happened at 5:30 in the morning, and moments later, Luke too fainted and had to be taken out of the courtroom. The drama even continued outside the court. Pomersbach refused to answer questions posed by the media. The Australian cricketer found vociferous support from RCB director Sidhartha Mallya, who himself courted controversy by questioning the morality of the victim. He tweeted, "The girl who is accusing Luke of hitting her fiance was all over me last night. If he was her fiance she wasn't exactly behaving like a future wife." However, his father Vijay Mallya was more circumspect. "Till the matter is sorted, Luke will not take the field for the Royal Challengers," said Mallya. Angered by the tweets of the RCB director, the victim threatened she would sue Sidhartha Mallya for questioning her character. The police have now been asked to scan the CCTV footage and explain the sequence of events. The court has also sought a report on the kind of injuries Luke and the victim's fiance have suffered. The magistrate will then decide whether to grant him regular bail or send him to Tihar Jail.