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***Official*** Spot-Fixing Scandal

Faisal1985

International Vice-Captain
The ICC has set up a three-man tribunal to look into the spot-fixing allegations against three Pakistani players. The hearing will be held between January 6 and 11 in Doha, Qatar.

The panel that will look into charges against Salman Butt, Mohammad Asif and Mohammad Amir is made up of Michael Beloff QC, Justice Albie Sachs of South Africa and Sharad Rao of Kenya.

The three players were provisionally suspended by the ICC in September for their alleged involvement in the spot-fixing controversy during the Lord's Test. In a News of the World sting, Mazhar Majeed, a player agent, claimed to have paid Amir and Asif to bowl no-balls to order with the collaboration of Butt. The players lodged appeals against their suspensions, though Asif eventually withdrew his, and they were heard in Dubai in October. Michael Beloff, the ICC code of conduct commissioner who chaired the hearing, rejected their appeals, following which the PCB proceeded to revoke their central contracts.

The hearing of the appeals was only meant to establish whether or not the ICC followed the correct procedures in provisionally suspending the players, and not their innocence or guilt. A criminal case has been filed against the players in the UK, and evidence gathered by Scotland Yard has been passed on to the Crown Prosecution Service.

Apart from Beloff, the two other members of the tribunal have shared a long association with the ICC. Sachs, who was a senior judge on the constitutional court of South Africa, is Cricket South Africa's representative on the ICC's Code of Conduct Commission. Rao is Kenya's representative on the same commission with wide experience in international legal and sports panels, including the Commonwealth Games Federation.
I guess we will find out soon....
 

Faisal1985

International Vice-Captain
I was hoping that they would act sooner than that. Kick out the fixers. And thank God it is independent judges who will be looking at the matter and not idiotic and partisan individuals like Justice Qayyum.
Well i don't know how "partisan" the judges are...but its not making sense to me that British Court system is not giving any updates on the issue...i was hoping if the British Courts gave a verdict it will be at least quite convincing for all the fans....now if ICC goes on to put punishments without the Courts making a judgment and later the Court says due to the lack of evidence they give them an acquittal then what will ICC do? Over turn there own verdict? If not, it will seem like quite unfair that the players are clean and yet the ICC is imposing bans on them....

So, for me its a very thin line that ICC has to walk to this issue.....
 

smash84

The Tiger King
Well i don't know how "partisan" the judges are...but its not making sense to me that British Court system is not giving any updates on the issue...i was hoping if the British Courts gave a verdict it will be at least quite convincing for all the fans....now if ICC goes on to put punishments without the Courts making a judgment and later the Court says due to the lack of evidence they give them an acquittal then what will ICC do? Over turn there own verdict? If not, it will seem like quite unfair that the players are clean and yet the ICC is imposing bans on them....

So, for me its a very thin line that ICC has to walk to this issue.....
Anything is better than the PCB handling this issue. I really don't want any other Justice Qayyum type commission. By the way do you know how controversial a figure Justice Qayyum is?

And do you know one of the reasons that he acquitted Wasim Akram for match fixing charges was that he "had a soft spot for Wasim." He was a big fan of his. Few things could be worse than this.
 

Faisal1985

International Vice-Captain
Anything is better than the PCB handling this issue. I really don't want any other Justice Qayyum type commission. By the way do you know how controversial a figure Justice Qayyum is?

And do you know one of the reasons that he acquitted Wasim Akram for match fixing charges was that he "had a soft spot for Wasim." He was a big fan of his. Few things could be worse than this.
Wasim was not acquitted he was fined along with Waqar and some others. He had a soft corner for Wasim but he still did not acquit him. He was just lenient and also said that Wasim should never captain Pak again.
 

smash84

The Tiger King
Wasim was not acquitted he was fined along with Waqar and some others. He had a soft corner for Wasim but he still did not acquit him. He was just lenient and also said that Wasim should never captain Pak again.
If that wasn't enough there were also some quite damning tapes that were leaked to the press regarding this qayyum guy (IIRC) that were anti-Benazir (not that I was a fan of the PPP) but this Qayyum isn't the kind of guy that I would be too fond of.
 

Faisal1985

International Vice-Captain
If that wasn't enough there were also some quite damning tapes that were leaked to the press regarding this qayyum guy (IIRC) that were anti-Benazir (not that I was a fan of the PPP) but this Qayyum isn't the kind of guy that I would be too fond of.
How many people in the Pakistani Justice system could one be fond of anyways....its all a big farce....like recently i heard a court judgment for death penalty for Christian woman for blasphemy...now how ridiculous is that! The whole nation is crying that the law should be repealed but the judge was dumb enough to actually go ahead with a death penalty for a verbal slur!

Anyways, for sure its better then PCB handling it..but my concerns are for justice itself and any subjectivity in the case will be disastrous
 

smash84

The Tiger King
I really don't know why in the world is the blasphemy law there? Of all the laws that they could come with why this one???
 

Themer

U19 Cricketer
Well i don't know how "partisan" the judges are...but its not making sense to me that British Court system is not giving any updates on the issue...i was hoping if the British Courts gave a verdict it will be at least quite convincing for all the fans....now if ICC goes on to put punishments without the Courts making a judgment and later the Court says due to the lack of evidence they give them an acquittal then what will ICC do? Over turn there own verdict? If not, it will seem like quite unfair that the players are clean and yet the ICC is imposing bans on them....

So, for me its a very thin line that ICC has to walk to this issue.....
It'll make no difference as to the decision of the Crown Prosecution Service. The reason that the players in question might not be prosecuted would be because they may not have broken any laws within England as no bookmakers within this country do spot betting as its too easy cheat. Even if it is brought to court but dismissed we have to remember that the ICC has its own set of rules which are completely different to the law.
 

Faisal1985

International Vice-Captain
It'll make no difference as to the decision of the Crown Prosecution Service. The reason that the players in question might not be prosecuted would be because they may not have broken any laws within England as no bookmakers within this country do spot betting as its too easy cheat. Even if it is brought to court but dismissed we have to remember that the ICC has its own set of rules which are completely different to the law.
And what are those rules? So far i have not seen them...

If its not defrauding the bookies then what rule breaking are they being charged for by the ICC?
 

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