Pakistan Cricket Board Chairman Suspended and Reinstated Two Hours Later

The legal issues surrounding the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) took a new turn today as the interim chairman was suspended by a court order, before being reinstated just two hours later.

Najam Sethi, the interim chairman, was suspended by an Islamabad High Court judge for not obeying a legal order to elect a permanent PCB chairman by October 18.

However, only two hours later, an appeals branch at the same court granted a stay order on the judge’s ruling until November 4 after the PCB legal team had appealed.

After suspending Sethi, the court said: “Sethi, by not holding elections, has disobeyed the court’s order and he is suspended and all the matters relating to the board will be handled by PCB secretary.”

The court will now look at the matter again on Monday 4th November.

After the stay order, Sethi tweeted: “Isbd High Court Two Member Bench has granted STAY against Single Bench Orders. I remain Chairman PCB.”

The PCB has been in chaos since May, when former chairman Zaka Ashraf was thrown out by the high Court over the “dubious” process which saw him elected.

The issues began after the International Cricket Council (ICC) demanded that political interference ceased in Pakistani cricket. The PCB chairman has traditionally been appointed in the gift of the President, the patron of the board.

Ashraf, who had been appointed by then-President Ali Zardari, successfully stood for election, but was removed after a legal challenge claimed the process was flawed.

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