For “threatening and bullying” India wicketkeeper Wriddhiman Saha, the BCCI has banned journalist Boria Majumdar for two years. After the Apex Council approved the three-member fact-finding committee’s recommendations, the ban went into effect, which included no press accreditation for any matches in India, an embargo on interviewing centrally contracted players, and no access to any of the cricket board’s and state units’ facilities.
The BCCI was expected to ban Majumdar after a three-person commission consisting of the cricket board’s vice-president Rajiv Shukla, treasurer Arun Dhumal, and BCCI Apex Council member Prabhtej Singh Bhatia found him guilty of “bullying” Saha, according to reports on April 23. According to this, a message will be filed to the ICC, requesting that the journalist be barred from covering world events.
“To investigate into the case of Wriddhiman Saha getting threats and intimidation from a senior journalist,” an investigative committee was formed. It occurred after the 37-year-old wicketkeeper shared a snapshot of the comments on Twitter on February 19: “After all of my contributions to Indian cricket…this is what I face from a so-called “Respected” journalist!” This is the state of journalism today.” “You did not call,” stated another message apparently sent by the journalist. I’m not going to interview you again. Insults don’t sit well with me. And I’ll keep this in mind.”
Saha has been left out of the Test selection for the home series against Sri Lanka. Many previous cricketers expressed sympathy for Saha, including ex-Indian team head coach Ravi Shastri, but the wicketkeeper refused to name the writer in public. At the hearing, he did, however, divulge the person’s identify, Boria Majumdar.
Majumdar has previously stated to this publication that he would sue Saha for defamation. “I’m going to sue Wriddhiman Saha for slander.” He tampered with, doctored, and edited screenshots. I supplied the BCCI all the facts earlier today, and I sent the complete sequence of events to everyone in the BCCI. Majumdar has previously stated, “I have also tweeted my side of the story.”
The journalist said in his testimony to the BCCI that Saha’s manager came to his house on February 1 and set up “two interviews as a brand development exercise.” Majumdar texted the player over WhatsApp on February 10th, just before the IPL big auction. On February 13, when Saha was signed by Gujarat Titans on the second day of the IPL auction, a series of SMS were received. The journalist’s statement included screenshots of his WhatsApp messages with Saha, saying that the latter had “confirmed an interview through Zoom.”
According to the statement, the messages were written in the context of “disappointment at Mr. Saha’s inability to meet his professional obligations, and hence was an expression of dismay by Mr. Majumdar.” Threats or aggressive action had been denied by the journalist.
