Shakib Al Hasan charged in alleged murder case: What we know so far
In a shocking development, Bangladesh's star all-rounder Shakib Al Hasan has been charged in a case of alleged murder during the civil protests in the country earlier this month. Apart from Shakib, former Bangladesh Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina, some former ministers and lawmakers have also been named as accused in the first information report (FIR) filed in connection with the alleged murder case.
As per a report in bdcrictime.com on Sunday, August 24, following the filing of the criminal case, Supreme Court lawyer Barrister Shajib Mahmood Alam has sent a legal notice to the Bangladesh Cricket Board (BCB), demanding Shakib's immediate removal from the national cricket team.
The report claims that, as per the legal notice, the all-rounder should not be allowed to continue playing for Bangladesh under International Cricket Council’s (ICC) regulations since he is facing a criminal case.
Shakib is currently in Pakistan, representing Bangladesh in the first Test at the Rawalpindi Cricket Stadium. He claimed one wicket in 27 overs in Pakistan's first innings before being dismissed for 15 in Bangladesh's first innings.
According to a report in ESPNcricinfo, Shakib is among 147 people against whom charges have been filed in connection with the alleged murder case. The website confirmed the details from an officer at Dhaka's Adabor police station, where the case was filed.
The case in question is related to the death of a garment worker Mohammed Rubel and was filed on Thursday by Rafiqul Islam, father of the deceased. As per a report in Daily Star, Shakib is the 28th accused in the FIR related to the alleged murder case.
"In the case statement, the complainant alleged that some of the accused as per instruction directly or indirectly from some others opened fire while hundreds of students including Rubel were protesting at Ring Road in Adabod area on August 5," the report went on to add.
As per the FIR, Rubel suffered bullet wounds during the protests and died of his injuries at a hospital after two days.
Apart from being one of Bangladesh's biggest cricket stars, Shakib is also a former member of parliament of the Awami League. The political party was in power in Bangladesh until the start of this month. Subsequently, civil unrest threw the nation into complete turmoil.
Shakib was not in Bangladesh when the protests began
Incidentally, Shakib was not in Bangladesh on August 5. Even when the protests gained momentum and forced Hasina to resign as Prime Minister and flee to India, the cricketer was not in the country.
At that point in time, the seasoned all-rounder was in Canada. He was captaining Bangla Tigers Mississauga in the Global T20 Canada league in Brampton. Before that, he was in the USA to feature in the Major League Cricket (MLC).
Bangla Tigers Mississauga were knocked out of GT20 Canada after skipper Shakib refused to play the Super Over in the Eliminator against Toronto Nationals.
(Story updated on August 24 at 5:15 pm)