Politics bowls Fizz out of IPL – The Daily Star

A positive move but requires more understanding
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The decision to release Bangladesh pacer Mustafizur Rahman from the Indian Premier League (IPL) on Saturday is a glaring example of interference of dirty politics into sports, observed cricket aficionados from across the border.
The 30-year-old, the only representative from Bangladesh in the glamorous Indian domestic T20 tournament this year, was released by his franchise Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) on the instructions of the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI). It was the first time that a cricketer was released by an IPL side due to political reasons.    
In the last few days, pressure had been mounting on KKR and its owner Shah Rukh Khan from ruling party BJP’s politicians and religious leaders to release Mustafizur, citing concerns for the safety of minorities in Bangladesh.   
According to Indian media reports, religious leader Devkinandan Thakur slammed Shah Rukh for Mustafizur’s inclusion and ruling party BJP politician Sangeet Som had labelled the Bollywood star “a traitor”. Mustafizur fetched INR 9.20 crore at last month’s mini-auction that made him the most expensive Bangladeshi player in IPL history. 
Following the decision, Indian politician and current Member of Parliament Shashi Tharoor called out the BCCI for “deplorably” forcing Mustafizur’s removal, reiterating that politics should not be dragged into sports.
In a tweet posted soon after Mustafizur was officially released by KKR, Tharoor questioned whether the same decision would have been made had the Bangladeshi player belonged to a different religious identity.
“What if the Bangladeshi player in question had been Litton Das or Soumya Sarkar? Who are we punishing here: a nation, an individual, his religion? Where will this mindless politicising of sport lead us?” he wrote.
On Friday, Tharoor had spoken on the matter to Indian news agency ANI. “Cricket should not be made to bear the burden for attacks on minorities in Bangladesh… we should try and insulate some areas from others,” Tharoor said. 
“Mustafizur Rahman is a cricketer and has nothing to do with any of these things. He has not been personally accused of any hate speech or condoning or defending any attacks. Mixing these two things is simply not fair.
“If we become a country that isolates all of our neighbours, and say nobody is playing with any of them, how does it do any good? … It is purely a sporting decision, and we should not let politics come into this… We surround Bangladesh on three sides, we cannot isolate them, we have to play with them,” he added.
Former India all-rounder Madan Lal also criticised the BCCI, saying the Indian board “has taken this decision because nobody can challenge them”. He also urged that “politics should not be involved in sport.” 
BCCI’s decision could also have implications on Bangladesh’s matches in the upcoming ICC T20 World Cup, set to be co-hosted by India and Sri Lanka next month. With Bangladesh set to play three of their four group-stage matches at Eden Gardens — KKR’s home venue, which had already received threats of disruptions from protesters if Mustafizur featured in the IPL — and the other group game in Mumbai, calls have already been made to shift the Tigers’ match venues.
“Shifting the [World Cup] venues from India to elsewhere could be a solution, and the [Bangladesh Cricket Board] BCB or the government could pen a letter to the ICC in this regard,” said former Bangladesh skipper Khaled Mahmud, adding that any “unrest would only hamper the Tigers”.
Bangladesh team’s specialised batting coach Mohammad Ashraful also stressed that “cricket must not be mixed with politics”, while former Bangladesh skipper Akram Khan echoed the sentiment, calling it an “injustice” towards Mustafizur and raising concerns over what it could mean for Bangladesh’s World Cup games in India.
The BCB, which was set for an emergency meeting on Saturday night, had yet to release any statement on the issue. Mustafizur, who last played for Delhi Captals and has been a regular feature in the multi-billion-dollar franchise league, could not be reached for comment.
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