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New Delhi: Pakistan’s Federal Minister for Information, Ata Tarar, has criticised the International Cricket Council's (ICC) remarks on the deaths of three cricketers in Afghanistan for its "selective" and "biased" nature.
The ICC and the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) released the statements on Saturday, and condoled the death of Afghanistan cricketers in an air strike at the Paktika Province without taking Pakistan's name in their respective statements.
Both bodies reacted after the Afghanistan Cricket Board (ACB) decided to pull out from a T20I tri-series in Pakistan. The PCB later announced that Zimbabwe will replace Afghanistan in the tri-series, involving Sri Lanka.
Tarar said in a statement that Pakistan dismiss and condemns the statement made by the ICC, which gives the impression and makes claims that three Afghan cricketers were killed in Pakistan strikes.
"The ICC has not bothered to independently verify the claims by the Afghanistan board and issued a statement claiming a Pakistan attack," he said.
The minister further added that Pakistan have been a victim of terrorism for many years and demanded the ICC to correct its statement. He also said that it is strange that few hours after the ICC statement, the ICC chairman also repeated the same words on his social media account, and the ACB followed with similar words.
"The Afghanistan board made statements without presenting any real evidence. This seriously raises questions on the ICC’s independence and unbiased approach. An international sports governing body should not be promoting a controversial claim yet to be verified," he added.
Tarar also said that the ICC should remain independent and avoid making such statements. Many Afghanistan cricketers, including stars such as Rashid Khan and Gulbadin Naib, had condemned the aerial strike and the subsequent deaths in strong language through their social media posts on Saturday.
