Shafiqul Alam, former press secretary to the chief adviser of the interim government, has called on the Bangladesh Cricket Board to erase all records, statistics and milestones of Shakib Al Hasan. In a social media post on August 7, he said a cricketer who publicly venerates a convicted genocidaire has no right to have his name in cricket history.

Alam compared Shakib with former South African cricketers Barry Richards, Graeme and Peter Pollock, Mike Procter and Eddie Barlow. He said those players were excluded from international cricket for being part of a racist regime, while alleging that Shakib was corrupt and criticising his political position.

Alam also said he had seen no remorse from Shakib over crimes he attributed to Shakib’s “captain,” Sheikh Hasina. He referred to the 2009 killing of 57 military officers at BDR headquarters and said several athletes, including national champions in kabaddi, volleyball, basketball, wrestling and athletics, received death sentences or life imprisonment in connection with the incident. The report included no response from Shakib.