Youth and Sports Adviser Asif Mahmud Shojib Bhuiyan has said he sees no legal barriers preventing Bangladesh cricket legend Shakib Al Hasan from returning to the country or leaving again afterward.
At a press conference at Mirpur Sher-e-Bangla Stadium on Sunday, he said: "There should be no obstacles for (Shakib) coming to or leaving the country."
If all goes as planned, the first Test of the South Africa series starting on October 21 will be Shakib's final Test of his career.
Before the Kanpur Test in India, he announced that he wished to retire from Test cricket after playing this match.
Since then, there has been speculation about whether Shakib, who is accused in a murder case, might face any legal complications upon returning to the country.
Recently, a group of student protesters displayed graffiti expressing anger toward Shakib for his actions during the protests in July and August, during which, according to protesters, more than 1,500 people were killed.
They also conducted wall-writing expressing anger to Shakib at the cricket stadium area in Mirpur.
The protesters said they do not want Shakib to wear Bangladesh’s jersey again, citing his association with the “fascist government”—a reference to the previous administration led by Sheikh Hasina.
During his visit to Sher-e-Bangla Stadium on Sunday, ahead of the BPL and South Africa series, the sports adviser said: "He is a cricketer, he will play, and he is a citizen of Bangladesh."
He said: "It is the responsibility of the state to ensure the safety of every citizen. It is also the state's responsibility to ensure the security of the cricket team. We will ensure that."
On Saturday, there were reportedly confrontations between pro- and anti-Shakib groups outside the stadium.
Asif Mahmud considers such behaviour from Shakib's opponents as an expression of their emotions. He said: "This is a matter of emotions. They have the right to express those. In a democratic country, people have the constitutional right to protest or engage in any kind of demonstration."
He also mentioned that any instability could threaten the Bangladesh-South Africa two-Test series, saying: "We should be most respectful regarding security issues. Since South Africa will be visiting, we need to maintain a positive environment here. Otherwise, foreign countries may feel security concerns about coming here to play."
Asif Mahmud called on everyone to ensure that no one's safety is compromised.
He said any legal matters should proceed according to the law.
Referring to a previous statement from legal adviser Asif Nazrul, the sports adviser said: "If there is no involvement, Shakib's name will be removed from the murder case."
Shakib, however, has already clarified his political stance in a post on his verified Facebook page, where he expressed regret for remaining silent during the student-people movement.
In this regard, Asif Mahmud said: "There was a major movement, and Shakib Al Hasan had affiliations with the previous fascist government. He has explained this in his post, but there are still some lingering emotions. However, it appears that there are no legal issues at this time."
He hopes that the people of Bangladesh will remain respectful of the law, saying: "The law operates as it should. I believe that the people of Bangladesh respect the law. It has been proven before. After such a major uprising, the situation in our country did not escalate like it did in other countries after similar incidents. I believe that the people of Bangladesh will maintain their stance."