ICC moves men's U19 World Cup from Sri Lanka to South Africa
Ahmedabad, Nov 21: The ICC Board on Tuesday shifted the next year's men's Under-19 World Cup from Sri Lanka to South Africa, 11 days after the world governing body provisionally suspended the cricket body in the island nation due to government interference.
In fact it was Sri Lanka Cricket (SLC) that had reached out to ICC and notified about the government interference in the running of cricket in the country.
SLC and the Sports Ministry have been at loggerheads for some time. The government has accused SLC officials of being involved in corruption and mismanagement.
"The U19 World Cup has been shifted to South Africa from Sri Lanka due to SLC's suspension. In fact, participating nations were apprised some days back after SLC got suspended. South Africa hosted the U19 WC in 2020. The decision got approval at ICC Board meeting in Ahmedabad," an ICC Board member told PTI.
"Sri Lanka's bilateral and domestic cricket will not be affected by this."
SLC president Shammi Silva had recently warned that the country could lose the hosting rights of the U19 World Cup, scheduled to be held from January 13 to February 4, if the government's interference continued.
In a statement released on Monday, SLC had said," While SLC focuses on resolving the suspension issue, it appears that the minister of sports is pursuing a different agenda through media manipulation without pursuing legal avenues to address the allegations."
"This raises concerns about its intention to influence public opinion and other stakeholders to achieve its objective of taking control of SLC through the misuse of his powers.
"SLC calls for a fair and unbiased examination of the facts and remains focused on its mission to uphold the integrity of cricket in Sri Lanka and is confident that the truth will prevail in due course."
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Vinay Somaiah Suicide: BJP stages road blockade protest in Madikeri
Madikeri: The Kodagu district unit of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) staged a road blockade protest in Madikeri on Thursday, demanding the immediate arrest of those allegedly responsible for the suicide of party worker Vinay Somaiah.
BJP leaders and workers assembled at General Thimmaiah Circle in the heart of the city, raising slogans against the Congress party and the state government. The protestors specifically demanded action against a Congress spokesperson mentioned in a note Vinay reportedly left before his death.
Addressing the gathering, former Assembly Speaker K.G. Bopaiah expressed strong dissatisfaction with the government and the police. He said the FIR against Vinay originally stayed by the court was later revived under a different section by the police. “Vinay had merely posted about the unhygienic condition of the Napoklu public toilet. Instead of addressing the issue, an FIR was filed against him. This is unacceptable. The police seem to be functioning under the directions of Congress MLAs, disregarding even court orders,” he stated.
District BJP President Napanda Ravi Kalappa also criticized the police, saying Vinay had no direct connection to the original post and was wrongly targeted. “An innocent man has lost his life. Two MLAs in Kodagu district are misusing police power to suppress dissent. The FIR was registered under political pressure,” he alleged, further demanding that the two MLAs resign and cooperate with the investigation into Vinay's death.
The protest led to a road blockade that lasted for over an hour, significantly affecting traffic. Despite requests from police officers to clear the area, BJP workers insisted on the arrival of the District Superintendent of Police (SP) to address their concerns.
SP K. Ramarajan later arrived at the protest site and informed the protesters that since the incident occurred in Bengaluru, the investigation was being conducted by the police there.
He assured full cooperation from the Kodagu police in the ongoing probe. Following his assurance, the BJP workers dispersed peacefully.
District BJP General Secretary Mahesh Jaini, SC Morcha District President P.M. Ravi, Women’s Wing President Anita Poovaiah, and other key party functionaries including Suvin Ganapathy, Jagadish, Arun Shetty, municipal council members, and BJP office-bearers from across the district were present on the occasion.
