New Delhi: The Indian cricket board is likely to impose a two-year ban on talk show host Boria Majumdar after a three-member BCCI committee found him guilty of intimidating India wicket-keeper Wriddhiman Saha over an interview request.
“We will be informing all state units of the Indian cricket board to not allow him inside stadiums. He won’t be given media accreditation for home matches and we will also be writing to ICC to blacklist him. Players will be asked not to engage with him,” a top BCCI official told The Sunday Express on condition of anonymity.
The issue came to light on February 19 this year, when the 37-year-old Bengal wicketkeeper shared a Twitter post that said: “After all of my contributions to Indian cricket… this is what I face from a so-called ‘Respected’ journalist! This is where journalism has gone.”
Saha also shared screenshots of purported messages that he had received. One of them said: “You did not call. Never again will I interview you. I don’t take insults kindly. And I will remember this.”
Following his revelation, Saha received widespread support from the cricketing fraternity.
Former India coach Ravi Shastri urged BCCI president Sourav Ganguly “to dive in”.
Taking cognizance of the social media post, the BCCI formed a committee comprising vice-president Rajeev Shukla, treasurer Arun Dhumal and apex council member Prabhtej Bhatia to probe Saha’s allegation.
While deposing before the committee, Saha identified Majumdar and alleged that he was “bullied” for an interview.
Meanwhile, Majumdar accused the cricketer of “doctoring” the screenshots of the WhatsApp messages he had posted on Twitter and later shared with the committee.
