The Madras High Court has directed former Indian cricket captain Mahendra Singh Dhoni to deposit ₹10 lakh towards the cost of transcription and translation of CDs submitted in connection with his ₹100 crore defamation suit against retired IPS officer G Sampathkumar. The case pertains to Sampathkumar’s alleged attempt to link Dhoni to the 2013 IPL betting scandal.
Justice R N Manjula, while passing interim orders on February 11, held that the translation and transcription process—undertaken by the official interpreter of the High Court—was a substantial task requiring the full-time engagement of at least one interpreter and a typist over a span of three to four months. As a result, the cost for the work was fixed at ₹10 lakh.
In her order, the judge noted that pursuant to the earlier order dated October 28, 2025, the interpreter had begun the task of working through the contents of the CDs submitted by Dhoni. While the court had agreed to undertake the task using official resources, it was made clear that this would be conditional on the plaintiff bearing the necessary charges.
Justice Manjula observed:
“It was learnt from the interpreter that it was a humongous task and it takes much time and energy of at least one interpreter and a typist for nearly three to four months to complete the same.”
She further clarified that normally, the plaintiff is required to file translated documents along with the plaint. However, owing to “extraneous circumstances” that warranted official court assistance, Dhoni was duty-bound to bear the translation charges.
The court has directed Dhoni to deposit the amount into the Chief Justice Relief Fund account of the Madras High Court on or before March 12, 2026. The interpreter has been asked to complete the transcription and translation before the third week of March.
The case has been posted for further hearing on March 12.
Dhoni had filed a defamation suit seeking ₹100 crore in damages from Sampathkumar, alleging that the retired IPS officer had made defamatory remarks and linked him to the IPL betting scam in 2013, damaging his reputation.
While the language of the CDs requiring translation was not specified in the court order, the complexity and volume of content have led to the extended timeframe and high cost of the translation exercise.
