Mustafizur Rahman of Bangladesh was signed by KKR in IPL 2026 auction for INR 9.20 crores.
In a new development, it has been reported that the decision to ask KKR to release Bangladesh pacer Mustafizur Rahman from their IPL 2026 squad was not discussed with the IPL governing council and was made by top BCCI officials directly.
The IPL Governing Council, which is responsible for overseeing such matters, was not consulted at all. Even top BCCI members and those intimately associated with the league were not taken into account, and they knew about the decision only after it was reported in the media.
A top BCCI official said that there was no internal discussion before instructing KKR to release Mustafizur Rahman.
“We ourselves got to know about this through the media. There was no discussion. No suggestion was taken from our side,” the BCCI official told the Indian Express.
BCCI secretary Devajit Saikia did not address questions about whether a formal board meeting was held or if the IPL governing council was notified before the decision. However, Saikia had previously supported the board's position, claiming that the instruction was sent due to "recent developments" and that KKR was instructed to release Mustafizur from the squad.
The retaliation from the Bangladesh government and the Bangladesh Cricket Board (BCB) has been swift. On Monday, Bangladesh’s Information and Broadcasting Ministry banned the telecast of IPL 2026 matches in the country.
On the other hand, the BCB has also decided not to send its national team to India for the T20 World Cup 2026, citing serious security concerns. They have requested the ICC to move their matches of the tournament out of India and to Sri Lanka, and are now waiting for the ICC’s response.