ICC gives in to fringe elements, pulls Aleem Dar out of India-SA series

NEW DELHI: The rising wave of extremism and social intolerance across the country wormed its way into cricket with world body ICC deciding to withdraw prominent Pakistani umpire Aleem Dar from officiating in the remaining matches in the ongoing India-South Africa series.
The ICC decision also put an immediate question mark on India's ability to safely host the World T20 event next year.Dar was scheduled to officiate in the fourth and fifth ODIs of the ongoing series in Chennai and Mumbai respectively. The decision came hours after the Shiv Sena stormed its way into the Indian cricket board (BCCI) headquarters in Mumbai to disrupt talks with the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB). They also threatened to disallow Dar from officiating in the Mumbai ODI.
"The ICC has made the decision following Monday's incident in Mumbai where a group of extremists stormed the BCCI offices and threatened to prevent the umpire from standing in the fifth ODI on Sunday. Under the present circumstances, it will be unreasonable to expect from Aleem that he will be able to perform his duties to the best of his abilities. As such, he has been withdrawn and his replacement will be announced in due course," an ICC spokesman said.
A senior BCCI official told TOI that the decision to remove Dar - coupled with the disruption of talks by the Sena between board president Shashank Mahohar and his Pakistani counterpart Shaharyar Khan - could have a bearing on the ICC World T20 event scheduled to be held in India next March.
"Questions will be raised about India's ability to safely host the T20 world cup, which will also include Pakistan as a participant. We might see matches being moved out of Mumbai at the very least. At the worst, we might see the event being moved out or questions being raised," said the official.
Before the ICC decision, BCCI secretary Anurag Thakur was asked in New Delhi if the board would remove Dar, an ICC Elite Panel umpire, from officiating in the Mumbai ODI to avoid controversy."There was a threat of protests in Rajkot as well. Nothing happened there. We won't go into threats and perceptions," he had said. On India's ability to host the World T20 safely, Thakur asserted that "political issues should not come in the way of cricket. It is every Indian's responsibility to look after the image of cricket lovers in this country . Acknowledging players who play and perform, even if they are from other countries, should not be compromised."
Akram, Akhtar pull out of commentary
The ICC's decision to remove Aleem Dar and the Shiv Sena's threat has prompted Pakistani commentators and ex-cricketers Wasim Akram and Shoaib Akhtar to pull out of their broadcasting duties for the fifth ODI in Mumbai, said a TV channel. They have cited "security reasons" as the main concern. Meanwhile, former Pakistan Cricket Board chief Tauquir Zia said, "The Indian govt wants to isolate Pakistan as a country and they are not agreeing to play cricket for the same reason."