The tensions between Bangladesh and India does not seem to be stopping. In the latest news, Bangladesh’s Yunus interim Government has ordered to ban the broadcast of the upcoming Indian Premier League season. This move comes days after Mustafizur Rahman was released from Kolkata Knight Riders.
In their release Bangladesh I&B ministry stated “The decision of BCCI to exclude Bangladeshi cricketer Mustafizur Rahman from the Kolkata Knight Riders squad for the upcoming IPL, scheduled to begin on 26 March, has deeply hurt, saddened, and angered the people of Bangladesh. Under these circumstances, Bangladesh’s I&B Ministry has informed that until further notice, all IPL matches and related programs will remain suspended from broadcast/telecast in Bangladesh.”
It all started in the IPL Mini Auction where Kolkata Knight Riders purchased Mustafizur Rahman for 9.2 crores. He was the only Bangladesh player to get sold. Days after the auction there were plenty of unrest in Bangladesh and there were plenty of clashes where Hindus were targeted. Following the geo political tensions between these two countries, there was plenty of pressure from prominent leaders asking for KKR and Shah Rukh Khan to release the Bangladesh player Mustafizur Rahman.
Recently many Indian political leaders had criticised KKR and their owner Shah Rukh Khan for including Mustafizur in their line-up at a time when Hindu minorities are being attacked in Bangladesh. Post this, BCCI secretary Devajit Saikia advised to release Mustafizur Rahman from the KKR squad. He was then released by Kolkata Knight Riders.
After this decision came out, Bangladesh Cricket Board announced an immediate meeting and later requested ICC to take out their fixtures out of India for the upcoming WT20. Today Bangladesh government has officially put a ban on broadcasting of IPL in the country. This is the first time since 2008 that there will be no broadcasting of IPL in Bangladesh. As the tussle between these two boards continue it will be interesting to see where this ends up.
