Who Is Jacob Martin? Indian Cricketer Who Was Jailed in Tihar for Forgery and Fraud, Finally Acquitted After 22-Year Long Legal Battle

Key Points

Before the case, Martin scored over 1,000 runs in the 1998-99 Ranji season, led Baroda to its 2000-01 title, and played 10 ODIs for India — achievements he says the case's 22-year shadow, plus a lost Railways job and no BCCI role, overtook.

TWENTY-TWO YEARS AGO, a young teenager overstayed his visa after the conclusion of a cricket tour in England. This seemingly unrelated incident had a long-lasting and consequential impact on Indian cricketer Jacob Martin. In 2004, the batsman was wrongly pulled into a legal case and accused of indulging in human trafficking, forging, cheating, and more such offenses. For more than two decades Martin suffered the consequences of these allegations: a brief stay in the Tihar Jail, a coaching career gone off rails and even a lost job with the Railways. More than two decades later, Martin finally received the verdict that he had been waiting for so long: he was acquitted. 

In August 2026, Jacob Martin, former India batsman, was acquitted in a 22-year-old criminal case that arose out of a controversial 2004 cricket tour of the United Kingdom. The Patiala House Court in Delhi cleared Martin of all of the charges against him: forgery, cheating, criminal conspiracy, and offences under the Passport Act.

End of a 22-Year-Long Legal Battle and Jacob Martin's Acquittal

The case dates back to a 2004 FIR filed by the police in connection with an alleged human trafficking network involving a local club, Ajwa Sports Club. It was alleged that forged documents and fake UK immigration stamps were used to facilitate the travel of people to the United Kingdom under the guise of participating in sports tours, with some of them later overstaying their visas. 

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Martin faced charges under several provisions of the Indian Penal Code (IPC), including Section 420 for cheating, Section 468 for forgery intended to facilitate cheating, Section 471 for using a forged document as genuine, and Section 120B for criminal conspiracy. He was also charged under Section 12 of the Passport Act that deals with offences such as passport fraud, unauthorized travel, and the suppression of nationality details.

Prosecutors alleged that Martin was a key figure within a sports-based human trafficking ring and smuggled individuals to the UK. They claimed that Martin and his associates used a made-up sports club, the Ajwa Sports Club, to organize fake sports tours so that individuals could be passed off as cricket players and thus could obtain a visa to go to the UK.

The Patiala court also found no credible evidence establishing that Martin owned or controlled Ajwa Sports Club, and several witnesses also failed to support the prosecution's claims. Ultimately, the case against Martin fell apart and resulted in his acquittal. 

Now 54 years old, Jacob Martin had finally seen the end of a legal battle that lasted more than two decades that had significantly impacted both his cricket career along with his professional and private life. 

The Tour That Changed Everything: The 2004 Case Against Jacob Martin

After years of hard work to carve out a name for himself in cricket, Martin saw the darkest part of his career: the 2004 case against him. Speaking to reporters, Martin revealed that the case began with a team associated with him that travelled to the UK in 2004. While most of the players returned to India, one player stayed behind after overstaying his six-month visa. Martin said the player obtained a fake immigration stamp through an associate in Britain. He was later deported from the UK, and was detained at Indira Gandhi International Airport for questioning.

Martin maintains that his name did not appear in the original FIR and claimed that he was subsequently brought into the investigation partly because of his identity and profile as a prominent sportsperson. In a statement given to reporters talking about the case and his circumstances, Martin said:

Police, however, presented a different version of events. They alleged that Martin acted in collusion with an associate and organized the boy's UK trip under the guise of a cricket tour in exchange for money, and that the duo invented a fictitious organization known as “Ajwa Sports Club” to be used as part of the arrangement. Investigators also raised the possibility of human trafficking or an illegal immigration racket.

However, these allegations could not be established in court.

Arrest, Tihar and a Career Quietly Dismantled

On April 26, 2011, Martin was arrested in Delhi and spent time in Tihar Jail as the case continued through its proceedings in the legal system. The matter remained pending even in 2016, when the Baroda Cricket Association appointed him as the coach of its Ranji Trophy team. The decision attracted criticism because the criminal case against him was still ongoing.

The consequences also extended beyond cricket. Martin said he lost his job with the Railways because of the case and was unable to secure a position with the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI). According to the sportsman, the uncertainty surrounding the case that dragged on over two decades had a lasting impact on his life.

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“My name was not even in the FIR, but when the investigation took place, I was involved in this case because the name was big and I was an international cricketer, because of that. And after the case ended, this... now, after 22 years... during these 22 years, I was not getting any answers from the BCCI either; I lost my job in the railways. So I had a lot of stress because of this, but this judgment that has come now- I have got a clean chit; it will be a big settlement for my life and very... after 22 years, this... appeal I have received is a very big U-turn for my life,” he added.

Jacob Martin’s Career as a Sportsman: From Ranji Runs to the India Team

Before the legal case and the courtly proceedings took its toll on the cricketer’s life and career, Jacob Martin had established himself as one of the most prominent and well-versed batsmen in Indian cricket. Born in Baroda, Gujarat, he had made a name for himself in the sports, earning praise for his patience, concentration, and his ability to spend long periods at the cricket field.

His breakthrough as a cricketer came during the 1998-99 Ranji Trophy season, when he scored more than 1,000 runs and became only the sixth batter in the tournament’s history to achieve the feat. That performance also thrust him into the national spotlight, and eventually earned him an invitation to join the Indian cricket team.

Martin's first-class career was longer and more successful than his international stint. He played 138 first-class matches, scored more than 9,000 runs, hit 23 centuries, and maintained a batting average over 46. He also captained Baroda during the 2000-01 Ranji Trophy season and guided the team to the title, which remains Baroda's most recent championship. He later returned to Baroda cricket as a coach.

His international career was relatively short. Martin represented India in 10 ODIs, making his debut against the West Indies in Toronto in 1999. Between 1999 and 2001, he scored 158 runs at an average of 22.57.

(Edited by Harsh Pandey)

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