he Bangladesh government on Monday ordered an indefinite suspension of the telecast and promotion of all IPL matches in retaliation to the BCCI instructing Kolkata Knight Riders to release Mustafizur Rahman from their squad.
The Bangladesh Cricket Board (BCB) is already seeking relocation of all their T20 World Cup, scheduled to begin early next month, matches out of India. The IPL will begin on March 26.In an official communication issued on Monday, the relevant authorities confirmed that all IPL-related broadcasts, promotions and event coverage have been suspended with immediate effect and will remain so until further orders. The decision, the statement said, was taken in the “public interest” and approved by the appropriate authority.
“Under these circumstances, the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting has informed through an official letter that, until further notice, all IPL matches and related programs will remain suspended from broadcast/telecast in Bangladesh”, Bangladesh’s Press Information Department (PID) said in a statement on Monday.
This decision comes on expected lines after Asif Nazrul, Bangladesh’s youth and sports adviser, had written on his official Facebook page that he would ask the information ministry to stop the telecast of IPL matches after Rahman had been released by KKR. On Sunday, the BCB had cited growing concerns about the safety and security of the Bangladesh contingent as the reason for not travelling to India for the T20 World Cup.
