Sri Lankan President Ranil Wickremesinghe has sacked Sports Minister
Roshan Ranasinghe, reported Sri Lanka-based Daily Mirror. Wickremesinghe
announced the decision at the ongoing Cabinet meeting.
On November 6, Roshan Ranasinghe suspended the whole Sri Lanka Cricket board
following outrage over Sri Lanka’s 302-run defeat against India in the Cricket
World Cup, reported Daily Mirror.
Ranasinghe appointed an Interim Committee for Sri Lanka Cricket, chaired
by World Cup-winning captain Arjuna Ranatunga. The current committee stands “Temporally
Suspended.”
Ranasinghe had appointed Arjuna Ranatunga, Sri Lanka’s World Cup-winning
captain in 1996, to oversee a new interim board. A retired Supreme Court judge
and a former board president are among the seven members of the newly
constituted body.
Several Hours after Sri Lanka Sports Minister Roshan Ranasingha
established an interim committee led by 1996 World Cup-winning captain Arjuna
Ranatunga to take control of SLC, the Court of Appeal on November 7 issued an
interim order suspending the operation of the Gazette appointing in respect of
cricket governing body’s Interim Committee appointed by the Sports Minister.
This order was issued by the Court of Appeal in response to a writ
petition brought by SLC President Shammi Silva. This order is only valid for 14
days.
The court granted board president Shammi Silva’s plea, which challenged
minister Roshan Ranasinghe’s decision to dissolve the Sri Lanka Cricket Board
and form an interim committee on Monday.
The Sports Minister’s move to replace the Sri Lankan Cricket board was
not appreciated by Sri Lankan President Ranil Wickeramasinghe who rebuked the
Sports Minister for his decision.
“President Ranil Wickremesinghe told me that if the Cricket Interim
Committee is not removed, the Sports Act will be brought under him. I said that
the committee will not be removed, I have told the President to remove me from
the ministry,” the Sports Minister had said in Parliament
Sri Lanka cricket was suspended by the ICC SLC following the political
slugfest. After hearing representation from SLC, the ICC Board decided that Sri
Lanka can continue to compete internationally both in bilateral cricket and ICC
events.
However, funding to SLC will be controlled by the ICC and the ICC Board
confirmed Sri Lanka will no longer host the ICC U19 Men’s Cricket World Cup
2024, which will now be held in South Africa.
ANI
