CWAB relent after Najmul Islam's removal
The Bangladesh Cricket Board (BCB) announced on Thursday (January 15) that they have decided to relieve Najmul Islam from his responsibilities as chairman of the board's Finance Committee with immediate effect following a review of recent developments and in the best interest of the organization.
The decision came hours after the national cricketers, under the umbrella of Cricketer Welfare Association, insisted that they would not take part in the ongoing BPL unless Najmul resigned. That forced the board to postpone the opening game of the day between Noakhali Express and Chattogram Royals at the Sher-e-Bangla National Cricket Stadium.
CWAB' president Mohammad Mithun told reporters that the cricketers would not take part in BPL if Najmul, who hogged the spotlight for all the wrong reasons yesterday, is not removed from his position after warning. Najmul had insulted cricketers and Tamim Iqbal in the recent past, forcing CWAB to give them the ultimatum.
"We will only play after they meet our demands. We wanted to have closed-door meetings to solve the issues, but they didn't take any initiative," Mithun told reporters at an impromptu press conference at a city hotel on Thursday. "We are still in the same stand. Everything has a limit. He has crossed everything. I didn't find any respect for cricket from his words," he said.
"We don't think he should remain in this position. We also previously did a press conference for his remarks. We are confused; as a cricket board director, what does he want to do?" Mithun added.
Mithun, however, said an immediate reaction from the board would not put everything back on track for everyone.
"They wanted to OSD him. Then he was given 48 hours to explain his situation. First match was cancelled. We want to play the second match if BCB confirms that he will be removed from the position," the wicketkeeper-batter said.
BCB said that Aminul Islam will replace Najmul as BCB finance committee chairman.
"The BCB President has decided to release Mr. Najmul Islam from his responsibilities as Chairman of the Finance Committee with immediate effect," BCB said in a statement. "The decision has been taken in accordance with the authority vested in the BCB President under Article 31 of the BCB Constitution and is aimed at ensuring the continued smooth and effective functioning of the Board's affairs," he said.
"Until further notice, the BCB President will assume the role of Acting Chairman of the Finance Committee. The BCB reiterates that the interests of the cricketers remain its highest priority. The Board remains fully committed to upholding the honour and dignity of all players under its jurisdiction.
"In this regard, the BCB hopes that all cricketers will continue to display the highest standards of professionalism and dedication to the betterment of Bangladesh cricket during what is a challenging period for the game, and will do their utmost to ensure continued participation in the Bangladesh Premier League (BPL)," it added.
CWAB agree to resume playing
The CWAB agreed to resume playing after Najmul Islam offered a public apology. The CWAB in a statement made it clear that they expect the BCB to reach a formal conclusion to their process against Islam following his ouster.
"We welcome the decision to remove BCB director Mr. Najmul Islam from the Finance Committee," Mithun said. "However, we have clearly informed the BCB that we want a written assurance regarding this decision. The BCB has initiated a formal process in this regard, which will take some time. We want to give them that time, but we also expect that the process will continue and reach its conclusion.
"At the same time, since director Mr. Najmul Islam has publicly apologised for his inappropriate comments about cricketers, we have accepted his apology. We have also informed the BCB that since he has publicly apologised and the process regarding his directorship is ongoing, we are ready to return to the field and resume playing."
** The copy was updated following CWAB's statement
