Bangladesh has banned IPL telecast in protest against the removal of Mustafizur Rahman from IPL. BCCI had taken this decision after the protests in India due to communal violence in Bangladesh. KKR bought Mustafizur for Rs 9.2 crore.
Dhaka: After Bangladeshi pacer Mustafizur Rahman was barred from playing in the IPL, Bangladesh has banned the telecast of IPL matches in the country. The Ministry of Information and Broadcasting of Bangladesh has directed TV channels not to telecast IPL matches in the country. The ministry has said in its order that there is no valid reason to ban Mustafizur Rahman and this decision of BCCI has hurt the people of Bangladesh. Therefore, keeping in mind the public interest, IPL matches should not be telecast in the country.
The Ministry of Information and Broadcasting of Bangladesh has clarified in a press note that IPL matches or any related events will not be telecasted till further notice and this order is being issued with the knowledge of the concerned authorities. Earlier, the Bangladesh Cricket Board (BCB) had demanded ICC to move Bangladesh’s matches out of India in the T20 World Cup to be held next month, citing security reasons.
Due to attacks on minorities in Bangladesh, Mustafizur’s inclusion in the team led to protests against Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) and team owner Shahrukh Khan. After this BCCI asked Kolkata to release Mustafizur. Kolkata had bought Mustafizur Rahman for Rs 9.2 crore in the IPL mini auction. BCCI Secretary Devjit Saikia had told the media that if KKR needs a replacement for Mustafizur, then it will be allowed.
In the IPL mini auction held in Abu Dhabi last month, Kolkata outbid Chennai Super Kings (CSK) to include Mustafizur, who had a base price of Rs 2 crore, in their team for Rs 9.2 crore. Amidst the communal violence and attacks on minorities in Bangladesh, many Hindu organizations and BJP in the country had opposed Mustafizur’s inclusion in the team. Some religious leaders of Ujjain had even threatened that if Mustafizur played, they would not allow the IPL match to take place. Only after this BCCI directed Kolkata to remove Mustafizur from the team.
In December, in Mymensingh, Bangladesh, Dipu Chandra Das, a garment factory worker, was lynched by a mob on charges of blasphemy. After this, last week another Hindu man named Amrit Mondal was also killed by the mob in Rajbari village. Only after these incidents, cyber attacks against KKR and Shahrukh Khan intensified after the inclusion of Bangladeshi pacer in the team and the leaders started making inflammatory statements.