SHC issues notices: petition seeking lifetime ban on tainted cricketers filed

The Sindh High Court (SHC) on Monday put the federal law secretary, Pakistan Cricket Board chairman and pace bowler Muhammad Aamir on notice in a petition seeking lifetime ban on Aamir for his role in spot-fixing. Aamir was cleared by the International Cricket Council (ICC) on January 29 to play domestic cricket. Aamir was serving a five-year ban imposed on him and his team-mates, Salman Butt and Mohammad Asif by the ICC after they were found involved in the spot- fixing scandal during Pakistan's tour of England in late 2010.
Rana Faizul Hassan, a civil rights campaigner and secretary general of NGO United Human Rights Commission of Pakistan, filed a petition requesting the court to impose life ban on the tainted players. The petitioner submitted that the left arm pace bowler brought bad name to the country by indulging in spot-fixing; nevertheless, he was allowed to play domestic cricket.
Rana claimed that some people were lobbying for his early return to the international cricket for their ulterior motives, adding the tainted players should not be allowed to play either domestic or national cricket. He pleaded the court to summon a report from the PCB for allowing Aamir's return to domestic cricket. The court was further requested to impose lifetime ban on the players who indulged in spot-fixing. After the initial hearing, a division bench headed by Justice Muhammad Ali Mazhar, issued notice to official respondents and the federal law officer to file their respective response to the petition by February 16.