Pak-India series in December cancelled

Earlier, Shiv Sena activists had stormed the BCCI office in Mumbai and disrupted a crucial meeting with Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) to protest against the India-Pakistan cricket series slated to be held later this year. Khan, who was here in Delhi, hoping to meet a few top government ministers and officials in a bid to resume cricketing ties with India, said the Indian Board has not responded to the initiative taken by him.

After arriving back from his Shiv Sena protest-marred India visit, Pakistan cricket chief Shahryar Khan hinted on Wednesday there was little chance of the country’s participation in the World Twenty20 in India next year. Sena Vibhag Pramukh Pandurang Sakpal told reporters that his party is firm that there should be no cricket matches between the two neighbouring countries.

The PBCC said it has informed the Cricket Association of the Blind in India of the decision.

They’ll now miss the fifth one-day global (ODI) in Mumbai on Sunday, when Pakistani umpire Aleem Dar will also be absent as the worldwide Cricket Council (ICC) have with withdrawn the official with Shiv Sena threatening to stop him from umpiring in it.

The Shiv Sena also forced the organisers to cancel the Mumbai concert of renowned Pakistani ghazal singer Ghulam Ali. “Otherwise it’s really hard for all nations that are playing the game and we all should play each other”, Misbah said. “Yes, the party has existed in the past and raised its ugly threats from time to time, but never with such force and venom”, an editorial “Shiv Sena madness” in The News global said. “If you talk about the December series, it will be very hard for me to commit till we talk with the union government”, Thakur said.

He said India-Pakistan series will only take place when relations between the two countries improve and the two governments start talking to each other again.

“We will wait and see for next week or so”. India had blamed militants based in Pakistan for the attacks. “The talks regarding an Indo-Pak bilateral series have not derailed yet and we will continue anytime after the India-South Africa series ends”, he told the “Daily Dawn” newspaper.

About recent attacks by Shiv Sena, Singh assured that there is no threat to Pakistani citizens visiting India. Manohar, it is learnt, will not go to Delhi as he travelling to Pune and Shaharyar Khan is expected to meet senior BJP leader Arun Jaitley to discuss the resumption of bilateral series.