The International Cricket Council and the Board of Control for Cricket in India on Tuesday announced the World Cup fixture with Ahmedabad, Hyderabad, Dharamsala, Delhi, Chennai, Lucknow, Pune, Bengaluru, Mumbai and Kolkata confirmed as host cities.
With cities like Mohali, Nagpur, Rajkot among others not finding a place in the roster, political parties hit out at the state and central governments.
In Punjab, senior Congress leader Partap Singh Bajwa blamed the AAP government for the non-inclusion of Mohali as others wondered why Ahmedabad is getting big-ticket matches over many other venues.
Manish Tewari, the Congress MP from Anandpur Sahib in Punjab, tweeted, “Why skip Mohali as venue of the World Cup?” In his tweet, he tagged BCCI, ICC and Congress leader and BCCI vice president Rajeev Shukla.
Bajwa, who is the leader of opposition in the Punjab Assembly, said the AAP government and the Punjab Cricket Association (PCA) should have sped up the construction of the new stadium, knowing that the World Cup was around the corner.
He alleged that the AAP government had “failed” to improve the law and order situation in the state, which was another reason for the stadium’s exclusion.
“The organised crime in the state has been on the rise ever since the AAP got hold of power in the state,” Bajwa said in a statement here.
“The AAP must explain whether it is due to security reasons that the only international cricket stadium in the state has been excluded from the list of venues for hosting Cricket World Cup 2023 matches,” he asked.
The Qadian MLA said the exclusion of Mohali cricket stadium would hurt the state’s tourism industry and economy.
Bajwa also accused BCCI of discriminating against Punjab and giving undue priority to the Narendra Modi Stadium in Ahmedabad, which is scheduled to host both the opening and final matches of the World Cup.
“The BCCI should have been more mindful of the sentiments of the people of Punjab,” Bajwa said.
“The exclusion of Mohali Cricket Stadium is a clear case of bias against the state,” he said.
Punjab Sports Minister Gurmeet Singh Meet Hayer on Tuesday had condemned the exclusion of Mohali from the list of host cities for the cricket tournament.
Hayer described the exclusion of Mohali for the World Cup matches as “open discrimination” against Punjab.
(With inputs from PTI)
Watch ICC World Cup 2023 Controversy | Major cricket stadiums shunned | Why is Mohali Stadium not on the list?
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