In a meeting held at the Mahalaxmi racecourse on Thursday the Royal Western India Turf Club (RWITC) stewards handed out suspension of 90 days each to trainers Pesi Shroff and MK Jadhav for vicarious liability in view of some of their horses testing positive for banned drug venlaflaxine. Both trainers had made out a case for mitigating circumstances by submitting scientific proof that two supplements, soda bicarbonate & Epsom salt, reportedly manufactured by reputed Indian companies, were responsible for the positive findings as they were found to have been contaminated with venlaflaxine.

Experts support contamination theory Shujaat Hussain, senior stipendiary steward, who investigated the charges against the two trainers, had also submitted a note to the body of stewards who were to conduct a fresh hearing in the matter as per the directive of the board of appeal of RWITC. He had opined that the claim of contamination made by the trainers was not endorsed by the experts. However, when mid-day spoke to the two experts, one a senior professor of a premier scientific institute from Bangalore and the other a senior veterinarian of over four decades’ experience, both stated that the positive findings appeared to be a case of contamination.