145;Ban on Azhar should be lifted146;

Finally, tainted former India skipper Mohammed Azharuddin has got an official line of support.

Finally, tainted former India skipper Mohammed Azharuddin has got an official line of support. The Board of Control for Cricket in India8217;s BCCI chief administrative officer Ratnakar Shetty has not only rebutted ICC CEO Malcolm Speed8217;s comments on the Board8217;s decision to invite Azhar to its November 4 function, but has also opined that Azhar has suffered enough and should be back in the regular folds with the life ban lifted.

The ban was imposed on Azhar in 2000 and Shetty8217;s comments in general does reflect the Board8217;s position vis-a-vis Azhar.

In a statement released to the media today, Shetty said: 8220;The general opinion is that Azhar had undergone enough punishment and he should be allowed to lead his life like cricketers who had faced a similar charge in other countries but are going about as if they had done no wrong.8221;

He does put in his mild disclaimer, though, when he says: 8220;It must be clarified there is a feeling among Indian board members that what the board did when the scandal broke might have been correct, even if it was a knee-jerk reaction. In retrospect, they feel the board had been too harsh on its players considering the way the other boards went about protecting the guilty.8221;

The invite to the function has also been referred to. Speed has been critical of the invite, indicating that ICC president Percy Sonn could reconsider his attending of the grand function of the Board in which all former skippers and a host of dignitaries have been invited.

Speed had compared the cases of Herschelle Gibbs of South Africa and Shane Warne of Australia with the Azhar issue, saying that while for the first two it was allegations, it was a proven case for Azhar.

Shetty hits back at this. 8220;His Speed8217;s assertion that Shane Warne and Herschelle Gibbs had already been fined and suspended by their respective cricket Boards and that their cases cannot be compared with that of Azharuddin who had been banned for life by the Indian Board sounds bizarre,8221; said Shetty.

Story continues below this ad

8220;Yes, Azhar should not be compared with those who got away with murder, people who continued to play after serving a token punishment even after they had admitted that they had taken cash to under-perform and those who unabashedly said they accepted money from bookies8230; Where is comparable zero tolerance?8221;

What Shetty was obviously driving at was that of a case of denying of livelihood to Azhar. 8220;One can understand not letting him play cricket, but8230; treating him as a pariah, surely not after serving the sentence for more than five years? What if the court exonerates him tomorrow? Will the ICC and the Indian Board be in a position to compensate for everything he has lost?8221; asked Shetty.

He said that Speed8217;s reaction smacked of 8220;ICC8217;s pettiness8221;, a coment that is bound to draw strong reaction from the ICC.