Bangladesh Cricket Board (BCB) director and cricket operations committee chairman Akram Khan, accompanied by his wife, visited national paceman Rubel Hossain at Dhaka Central Jail yesterday. Rubel’s parents were also present during Akram’s visit.
Rubel was sent to jail last Thursday by a Dhaka court in a case filed by film actress Naznin Akter Happy under the Women and Children Repression Act.
A Dhaka Metropolitan Magistrate passed the order after Rubel surrendered before the court and pleaded unsuccessfully for bail last Thursday morning. Since then, the 25-year old cricketer has passed three nights behind bars.
“Me and my wife went to see him (Rubel) at 11am today (yesterday),” Akram told the media yesterday. “His parents were already there when I went to see him,” he added.
When queried if Akram paid the visit on behalf of the BCB, he said, “Not at all. It was a personal visit. I tried to go and see him last Friday but it was not possible.
“I visited Rubel because of the personal relation that I have with him. We have been close for a long time. I will try to get him out of the mess, to be honest,” said the former captain.
Akram informed that Rubel looked panicked of the whole situation. “This I think is usual. Anyone going through this situation will panic. But as I said, I will look into the matter personally now,” assured Akram.
Meanwhile, BCB president Nazmul Hasan said the board will back Rubel only if they find out that the case filed by the film actress is an irrelevant one.
“The BCB will support Rubel in every manner possible, if the case is not relevant,” said Nazmul at Hazrat Shahjalal International Airport yesterday upon his return from Singapore.
“I will first look into the merit of the case and will then consult with the legal team of the board. Rubel will get all necessary support from the board,” the BCB boss added. Rubel is scheduled to attend a hearing today where he will appeal for bail.
Ever since he has been jailed, Rubel’s spot in the Bangladesh World Cup squad came under scrutiny. It has been rumoured that Rubel, if unavailable, will be replaced by another pacer, Shafiul Islam, who was earlier named as a standby by the BCB. The BCB chief though hoped that Rubel will get bail and will therefore be available for the World Cup.
Rubel started to attract the headlines for the wrong reasons when the film actress on Dec 13 last year filed a case against Rubel at Mirpur Model Thana.
