BCB apologises after security personnel assault journalist

A journalist covering the Bangladesh-South Africa series was assaulted on Saturday at the Shere Bangla National Stadium in Mirpur. He was charged with loitering without an accreditation card but the BCB had not issued the cards at the time. The two security personnel who assaulted the journalist didn't have accreditation cards either.

Sekandar Ali, cricket reporter of Bengali daily Alokito Bangladesh, was waiting at a walkway regularly used by journalists, watching the Bangladesh players practise their fielding, when a security person asked him for his accreditation. Since it hadn't been issued, he showed them his office ID and said he was a journalist who covers Bangladesh cricket. Not satisfied by his explanation, the security personnel assaulted him, at one point shoving him onto a metal grille and hurting the reporter's hand in the process.

The BCB, when informed of the incident, apologised. "We are sorry that such an incident occurred," Jalal Yunus, the BCB media committee chairman, said. "It is certainly unexpected and we will ensure that there is a permanent solution and there is no such occurrence in the future."

Mashrafe Mortaza, the Bangladesh captain, also regretted the incident and said that previous security breaches, particularly at the end of the third ODI between Bangladesh and India when a large number of people entered the ground - with some even venturing into the dressing room's viewing area - should also be looked into.

"There is a protocol for everything," Mashrafe said. "We all have accreditation cards even when entering the dressing-room. It is quite unfortunate that someone was physically assaulted. It is not desirable.

"At the end of our last match, a lot of people came inside the ground, possibly from outside. Foreign players will feel insecure if such things keep happening. I saw it happen in the last series. I am sure those in charge of the security will look into it. All of us should maintain discipline. Everyone would want such things to end through discussion, before the series begins."

Incidents such as these have been a regular feature of international cricket in Bangladesh in recent years. Most prominent among these was during the 2006 Chittagong Test* against Australia, when several journalists were beaten up by the police for protesting the assault on a photographer on the morning of the first day.