Banning terror state Pakistan from international cricket is easy. Here’s how.
It’s nearly ten days since the deadly Pulwama terror attack, in which the Pakistani terrorist organization Jaish-e-Mohammed succeeded in killing 40 Indian security personnel.
Anger against Pakistan is at an all-time high in India. There’s a growing realization that the only way Pakistani terrorism will end is if the terrorist nation ceases to exist.
Meanwhile, there is a need for a multi-pronged approach to punish the terrorist nation and isolate it internationally, especially its cricket team.
Pakistan’s cricket team is central to the country’s national image.
Barring it from competing internationally, starting from the upcoming World Cup, would be a crushing blow to the nation’s self-image and will be perceived by ordinary Pakistanis as a monumental failure on the part of prime minister Imran Khan (a former national cricket captain) and the Army, which runs the country from behind the scenes.
It will be perceived by Pakistanis as a hard, painful, and direct consequence of their nation’s export of terrorism to India.
The problem is that the fractious and faction-ridden Board of Control for Cricket (BCCI) does not appear to be serious about having Pakistan banned. It has sent the International Cricket Council (ICC) a halfhearted demand to ‘sever ties with nations harboring terrorism’, but seems resigned to the fact that there is “no way” that can happen.
The BCCI’s dilly-dallying is guaranteed to result in an embarrassing failure that will dent India’s international standing.
Decisive action needs to be taken, now.
India, with its giant, fast-growing economy and its cricket-mad public, is the engine that runs international cricket. As a result, no cricket-playing country can afford to fall foul of India.
The solution, therefore, is simple:
India’s government must step in, supersede the BCCI, and announce the following policy:
India will impose cricketing sanctions against any country that does any of the following:
A) Plays any form of cricket with Pakistan, either bilaterally or in a multi-lateral tournament.
B) Allows its players, umpires, coaching staff, technical staff, or commentators to participate in any league, tournament, or form of cricket in which Pakistani cricket players, umpires, coaching staff, technical staff, or commentators are involved.
The following cricketing sanctions shall be imposed on any country to which A or B (above) apply:
1) India will not play any form of cricket with such countries, either bilaterally or in a multi-lateral tournament.
2) India will prohibit its cricket players, umpires, coaching staff, technical staff, and commentators to participate in any league, tournament, or form of cricket in which such countries’ cricket players, umpires, coaching staff, technical staff, or commentators are involved.
3) India will debar such countries’ cricket players, umpires, coaching staff, technical staff, and commentators from participating in Indian domestic cricket, including the prestigious and lucrative Indian Premier League.
Furthermore, any company or corporation that does the following shall be debarred from doing business in India:
i) Sponsors the Pakistani national cricket team (male or female), or any Pakistani domestic cricket team.
ii) Sponsors or advertises in any cricket league or tournament in which Pakistani cricket players, umpires, coaching staff, technical staff, or commentators are participating.
This policy will ensure a universal boycott of Pakistan by all cricket playing countries (unless they are willing to lose the majority of their revenue).
It will ensure that no international company (for example, Pepsi, ABN Amro, American Express, etc. currently sponsor the the Pakistan cricket team) sponsors Pakistani cricket.
Finally, it will ensure that the upcoming World Cup is a non-starter if the ICC allows Pakistan to participate.
The ball is in the Indian government’s court. It must act now.
