KOLKATA: Welcoming the Kolkata Knight Riders’ decision to release Bangladeshi pacer Mustafizur Rahman from its squad, Bengal BJP leader and the party’s former West Bengal unit president Dilip Ghosh spoke on Sunday.
He said that, just as Pakistani cricketers are not allowed to play in the Indian Premier League (IPL), players from Bangladesh should also not be permitted to participate in the league.
With instructions from the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI), the country’s highest body governing cricket, the KKR authorities on Saturday released Mustafizur from the team for the 2026 IPL, triggering a nationwide controversy in cricketing circles.
KKR had bought the services of the 31-year-old left-arm bowler at Rs 9.2 crore during the IPL auction.
“What is happening in Bangladesh is not good for anyone. While the Government of India is doing its duty, the people of West Bengal are deeply distressed by the atrocities being committed against Hindus in Bangladesh. This is inhuman, and there will be consequences,” the former MP told reporters in West Medinipur district on Sunday.
“We want an early election in Bangladesh, a stable government and immediate restoration of law and order so that life and property are protected. A stable government can reduce cross-border tensions,” he said.
According to sources, the BCCI instructed KKR to release Mustafizur from its squad after rightwing politicians targeted actor Shah Rukh Khan, one of the owners of the Kolkata-based franchise, citing alleged anti-India sentiments and attacks on minorities in the neighbouring country.
Cricket commentators in Kolkata felt that Saturday’s development relating to the release of the Bangladeshi player from KKR’s IPL squad might deteriorate cricketing relations between the two countries.