Court Intervention Restores Sacked Sri Lanka Cricket Board to Power
The Court of Appeal in Sri Lanka has invalidated the decision made by the sports minister to dismiss the beleaguered Sri Lanka Cricket Board and has restored the expelled officials, pending a comprehensive hearing.
Board president Shammi Silva petitioned the court, challenging the move by minister Roshan Ranasinghe to dissolve the Sri Lanka Cricket Board and establish an interim committee, which was accepted by the court. The restoration of the board is effective for two weeks, during which the court will review the case once more.
This development is the latest episode in a long-standing struggle between Minister Ranasinghe and the cricket board, which represents the wealthiest sports organization in Sri Lanka.
Following the court’s decision, the interim committee, led by former captain Arjuna Ranatunga, vacated the Sri Lanka Cricket offices, making way for the reinstated office bearers to resume their positions.
The government is divided on this issue, as the cabinet appointed a competing committee, headed by Foreign Minister Ali Sabry, to address “pending issues” within the cricket board.
As of now, there has been no immediate response from Arjuna Ranatunga, the former World Cup-winning captain who assumed leadership of the board a day before, with a commitment to reforming and rejuvenating Sri Lankan cricket.
Minister Ranasinghe, while addressing parliament, criticized President Ranil Wickremesinghe for attempting to reverse his decision to dismiss the board, stating that he would not back down even if he were dismissed.
The International Cricket Council (ICC), the global governing body of cricket, has yet to comment on this escalating crisis. The ICC has regulations against political interference and has previously suspended Sri Lanka due to such issues.
Last month, the sports minister withdrew a three-member panel intended to investigate the cricket board after the ICC viewed it as interference.
On Saturday, Ranasinghe reached out to ICC full members, seeking their understanding and support. In his letters, he highlighted concerns about player discipline, administrative corruption, financial misconduct, and match-fixing allegations within Sri Lanka Cricket.
Sri Lanka has not won the World Cup since 1996, and Ranasinghe has criticized the cricket board for the decline in standards. In 2019, former sports minister Harin Fernando introduced strict anti-corruption regulations, noting that the ICC considered Sri Lanka one of the most corrupt cricketing nations in the world.
