KARACHI: Former Test leg-spinner Danish Kaneria, while reacting to Monday’s session at the National Assembly (NA), said he feels glad that his case is being finally pursued at the highest level.

Members of a parliamentary committee on Monday alleged that the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) is not supporting Kaneria in fighting his case against the life ban imposed by the England Cricket Board (ECB) because he belonged to a minority.

“I am thankful to the standing committee for raising the issue and am grateful to Iqbal Muhammad Ali and Ramesh Kumar Vankvani for pursuing my case,” said Kaneria. “It has given me renewed hope to represent Pakistan once again,” he added.

Kaneria said that he had written letters to the parliamentarians a few months ago, requesting them to pursue his case with the PCB. “I requested the honourable PM Nawaz Sharif to look into it.”

Kaneria said that Chief Operating Officer PCB, Subhan Ahmed had been under pressure from the ECB and whatever he told the NA Standing Committe was not true. “I don’t think there is any law that bars PCB to pursue a case of a contracted player,” said Kaneria. “PCB is the parent body for all the players and should never discriminate.”

“How can they just ignore my case, I have served Pakistan, I m a Pakistani national.”

Kaneria argued that Subhan had no ground to say that the PCB didn’t support spot-fixing trio of Mohammad Amir, Salman Butt and Mohammad Asif after the incident. “Didn’t Tafazzul Rizvi fight their case. Isn’t he a lawyer of PCB?” he questioned. “Didn’t the PCB violate its own ‘zero tolerance policy’ by fast-tracking Amir’s return?”

“On the contrary, I was told that it’s my personal case and the PCB won’t support me,” he concluded.

Published in Dawn, August 30th, 2016