Furious Sports Minister claims SLC a law unto themselves
Sports Minister Roshan Ranasinghe has lashed out at Sri Lanka Cricket officials after they lifted a ban on batsman Dhanushka Gunathilaka who was last month acquitted by a court in Sydney, Australia over a rape charge.
Minister Ranasinghe came out in all his fury and slammed a probe committee appointed by Sri Lanka Cricket that recommended the ban on Gunathilaka be lifted so he can get back to nudging the selectors for a comeback into the team.
“They (Sri Lanka Cricket) never asked me for my opinion and went ahead and did things on their own and this is a violation of a recommendation by a probe team headed by retired Supreme Court judge Kusala Sarajani Weerawardena that imposed the ban on Dhanushka Gunathilaka who has brought shame and disgrace to the country,” said Minister Ranasinghe.
“SLC Executive Committee a law unto themselves” – claims furious Sports Minister
He said only his Sports Ministry, the National Sports Council (NSC) and the country’s Attorney General had the right to effectively combine and decide on whether Gunathilaka can be allowed to start practicing for a place in the Sri Lanka team.
Minister Ranasinghe claimed that what Sri Lanka Cricket did was proof that it was a law unto itself and enjoying immunity from prosecution.
“They have their own laws and are not following any laws in Sri Lanka. Only we have the right to decide on a course of action with regard to Dhanushka Gunathilaka. We the Sports Ministry and the National Sports after consulting the Attorney General have to submit facts and figures to court and seek a ruling”, said Minister Ranasinghe.
But critics of the Sports Minister say the man is only good at pompously boasting of what he can do and paying only lip service to the calamity that has befallen the administration of cricket in the island.
Asked whether he is able to still fight back against cricket officials who have outsmarted him on yet another occasion, Minister Ranasinghe said: “Very soon. The results of three defeats by the team at the World Cup means something will happen”.
