A day after Shakib Al Hasan was named in the murder case of garment factory worker Mohammad Rubel, Bangladesh Cricket Board (BCB) president Faruque Ahmed said that the board will take a decision on Shakib's future after the ongoing Test against Pakistan in Rawalpindi. (More Cricket News)
A case was registered against star Bangladesh all-rounder Shakib in the wake of Rubel's death from being hit by a bullet during the protests in Dhaka. Rubel’s father accused several leaders of the Awami League party, including ousted member of parliament Shakib and the then prime minister Sheikh Hasina, of his son’s death. Shakib was playing in the Global T20 Canada league on the day Rubel passed away, on August 5.
After Shakib was charged in the murder, Shajib Mahmood Alam, a Supreme Court lawyer, reportedly sent a legal notice to the BCB on Saturday (August 24), seeking the removal of Shakib from all forms of cricket with immediate effect.
A Cricbuzz report stated that the notice mentioned that since Shakib has been named in a case, he cannot remain in the national cricket team according to the International Cricket Council's (ICC) rules. The report added that the notice also sought efforts to bring Shakib back to Bangladesh soon to help in propelling the murder case probe.
Faruque told reporters on Saturday that BCB is yet to receive the legal notice. But the newly appointed president, after a lengthy meeting with some board directors at the Sher-e-Bangla National Cricket Stadium, said they would take a call on Shakib before the second Test against Pakistan, slated to begin on August 30 in Rawalpindi.
"Let me say about Shakib. A case has been lodged. We are yet to get any legal notice. FIR (first information letter) was given in the case and later there will be an investigation and following that, the case will move in one direction or the other," Faruque was quoted as saying after the meeting.
"Look, now we are playing a Test match and it is very good news that we have played well on the fourth day. Tomorrow is the fifth day, the deciding day of the Test and I think at this point, we haven't thought about taking a stance. After tomorrow, once the game is over, we will sit and take a decision. By this time, we will also be able to say something about the legal notice as we will have received it by that time," he said.
"Look, the FIR is just the first information letter and they are yet to claim any charge as far as I know, so before that, it is difficult to take a decision. The relationship between BCB and Shakib Al Hasan is like a player and an employer according to the contract. After tomorrow, we can think exactly after getting the legal notice and based on that. I cannot withdraw him from the middle of the Test match," he added.
"The second Test match is from August 30, so there is a gap between the games. During this period, we can think about what can be done in this regard," Farque further said.
Meanwhile, the BCB president also stated that the board was confident of hosting South Africa in the upcoming two-match Test series at home, claiming it would not be a problem to play a bilateral series as opposed to a global event. The ICC had recently shifted the forthcoming Women's T20 World Cup from Bangladesh to United Arab Emirates owing to political unrest in the sub-continental nation.
"We are communicating with Cricket South Africa as we have some time. To host a tournament, there are a lot of things involved like logistics and security but I don't think there will be any problem playing a bilateral series. South Africa doesn't have any travel ban and the next series is against them. So, I am seeing no problem about it," Faruque said.
