Former Bangladesh captain Mohammad Ashraful has been banned from all forms of cricket for eight years for match fixing. A Special Tribunal, investigated fixing in the Bangladesh Premier League, delivered the verdict on Wednesday. Dhaka Gladiators managing director Shihab Chowdhury, proved guilty, has been handed 10 years of suspension from all cricketing activities. Sri Lankan Kaushal Lokuarachchi, who confessed his wrongdoings, has also been suspended for 18 months. Ashraful, who captained 13 Tests and 38 One-Day Internationals, pleaded guilty of corrupting a BPL match between Dhaka Gladiators and Chittagong Kings in the second edition of the tournament in 2013. The Bangladesh Cricket Board (BCB) immediately suspended him till the International Cricket Council’s (ICC) Anti-Corruption and Security Unit (ACSU) submitted its investigation report. The final hearing, based on the ACSU report, had started on January 19 this year. The anti-corruption tribunal, consisting of former Supreme Court judge Khademul Islam Chowdhury and lawyer Ajmamul Hossain QC, and former cricketer Shakil Qasem, released a short version of the verdict on Feb 26 and made the detailed version available on June 8. The verdict summary, provided on Feb 26, said former left-arm spinner Mohammad Rafique, Mosharraf Hossain and Mahbubul Alam not culpable of fixing. Dhaka Gladiators Chairman Selim Choudhury, chief executive Gaurav Rawat and England cricketer Darren Stevens were also proved innocent. Earlier, ICC chief executive Dave Richardson indicted nine for of BPL fixing at a BCB-ICC joint press conference in Dhaka on Aug 13. The BCB and the ICC had expressed disappointment and surprise in a joint statement after the short verdict. Both the organisations had stated that they were waiting for the detail verdict. –bdnews24.com
