Suspended Pandya, Rahul to be sent home; Kohli condemns comments
New Delhi/Sydney, Jan 12: Hardik Pandya and K L Rahul will be sent home on the first available flight from Australia as the BCCI suspended them Friday for their outrage-evoking comments on women, hours after the duo's on-field leader Virat Kohli expressed his disapproval.
The under-fire players have been suspended pending an inquiry into their sexist comments on a TV show, ruling them out of the three-match ODI series against Australia, beginning Saturday in Sydney.
"Both Pandya and Rahul have been suspended pending an inquiry," the Committee of Administrators (CoA) chairman Vinod Rai told PTI.
A few hours later it was confirmed that a decision has been taken to send them home from Australia.
"It's confirmed. The duo are being sent back. If they can book tickets then tomorrow they will be leaving (for India) or latest by day after," a senior BCCI official said.
He added that at this point their chances of making the squad for the New Zealand tour is also "bleak".
The suspension letter, as per clause 41 (6) of BCCI, states: "CoA suspends Pandya, Rahul from participating in 'any match or function or event or activity that is authorized, organized, sanctioned, recognized or supported in any way by the BCCI, the ICC or any State Association, until final adjudication of the matter'."
The 'Koffee with Karan' episode featuring the cricketers has since been taken down by the channel's online platform.
On the show, Pandya had boasted about hooking up with multiple women and being open about it with his parents. Rahul was, however, a shade more restrained in his responses on relationships and women.
A source in the BCCI said the two will be issued fresh show cause notices before a formal enquiry begins.
"Whether it will be an internal committee of the BCCI or an ad hoc ombudsman who will conduct an inquiry, is yet to be ascertained," the official said.
Pandya has regretted his comments twice since the show went on air on Sunday -- first on his official Twitter page and then in response to the BCCI show cause notice on Wednesday.
Rahul, on the other hand, is yet to react to the controversy.
The decision to hand them suspensions came after Rai's CoA colleague Diana Edulji recommended the same till further action against the two. This was after the BCCI's legal team refused to declare the comments a violation of the code of conduct.
The copy of the legal opinion, in possession of PTI, states: "We feel that present matter doesn't fall under the ambit of Code of Conduct and procedure of Code of Conduct can't be invoked in present circumstances."
Edulji had initially suggested a two-match suspension for the duo but referred the matter to the legal cell after Rai agreed with her and recommended the same.
"It is imperative that players be put under suspension till further course of action is decided for this misconduct as was done in case of (BCCI) CEO (Rahul Johri) when he was sent on leave on sexual harassment matter," read Edulji's response to the legal opinion.
In Sydney, on the eve of the ODI series, captain Kohli condemned the two for what he termed "inappropriate" comments but said he was not too stressed about the possibility of a ban on the all-rounder.
"...it's good that we have someone like (Ravindra) Jadeja who can do the all-rounder's role if a scenario like that occurs," Kohli said.
Days after their historic maiden Test series triumph, Kohli asserted that the side does not stand by the "individual opinions", which have triggered a social media storm.
The likes of Rishabh Pant and Manish Pandey will now be in contention to be their replacements. While Pandya was a certainty in the playing XI, an out-of-form Rahul was not in contention to play on Saturday.
It is speculated that the BCCI might bar players from appearing on entertainment shows owing to the ongoing furore.
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Iran restores access to WhatsApp and Google Play after they were banned amid protests
Tehran, Dec 25: Iran's government on Tuesday said it had lifted a ban on access to WhatsApp and Google Play after more than two years, the official IRNA news agency reported.
The report said the country's Supreme Council of Cyber Space made the decision in a meeting led by reformist President Masoud Pezeshkian, who has vowed to remove restrictions on social media.
Iran's telecommunication minister Sattar Heshemi in a post on X called the decision a “first step” in removing restrictions and said “the path will continue" — indicating the possibility of unblocking other services.
Many people reached by The Associated Press across the capital, Tehran, and other cities said they had access to the services on computers but not yet on mobile phones.
WhatsApp has been the third most popular messaging platform in Iran after Instagram and Telegram.
The ban on WhatsApp and Google Play was put in place in 2022 during mass protests against the government over the death of a woman held by the country's morality police for allegedly violating the strictly enforced dress code. The protests calmed in 2023 after a crackdown by police and security forces that led to the death of hundreds of people and the imprisonment of thousands.
Iran has blocked access to various social media platforms over the years but many people in the country use proxies and VPNs to access them.
