Justice Chauhan refuses Saleem Malik's plea to be granted NOC as he has yet 'to show good character'

[MenInG]

Justice Chauhan issues judgement in Saleem Malik hearing

Lahore, 26 October 2020:

Former Lahore High Court Judge, Mr Justice (retd) Fazal-e-Miran Chauhan, in his capacity as an independent adjudicator, today announced his judgement in Saleem Malik’s appeal in relation to his plea that PCB should issue a Clearance Certificate in his favour.

In the concluding paragraphs of the 11-page judgement, Justice Chauhan wrote: “Appellant (Saleem Malik) is seeking a Clearance Certificate from PCB to the effect that he is not involved in any kind of match-fixing or betting. This prayer for issuance of NOC from PCB (the employer) is unnatural.

“Appellant has applied for a job or post or permission to run a Cricket Academy under PCB and at the same time is seeking NOC from PCB. This prayer cannot be granted.

“The appellant had to show his good character independent of PCB. He cannot ask PCB to issue NOC for providing him a job or grant him permission.

“The appeal in hand is disposed of holding that PCB shall not use the transcripts dated 25-5-2000 against the appellant (Saleem Malik) without verifying the same against original tapes. PCB is further directed to decide the application of the appellant (Saleem Malik) for the post of batting coach, either way.”

PCB Counsel Mr Taffazul Rizvi, said: “The appeal filed by Mr Saleem Malik has been disposed of by the learned independent adjudicator, Mr Justice (Retd) Fazal-e-Miran Chohan. The learned independent adjudicator has inter alia held that the prayer of Mr Salim Malik for the grant of NOC cannot be granted as he has to show his good character.

“It is also been held by the adjudicator that Mr Salim Malik cannot ask the PCB to issue NOC to provide him job or grant him permission.”

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[MenInG]

Bit of a slap on Malik's face this judgement. So he is not trustworthy and this is now official!

 

[King-Misbah]

Nawaz Sharif was trust worthy to get treatment abroad! I dont really want to comment much on Lahore High Court but we all know all about them. I am not supporting Malik either.

 

[Giannis]

It's been like 20 years? These things should expire on their own rather than allowing judges to gatekeep morality.

 

[MenInG]

Pakistan’s former captain Saleem Malik, while talking in a press conference in Lahore on Tuesday with his lawyer Saud Cheema, expressed his satisfaction with the independent adjudicator’s verdict in the match-fixing case.

Former Lahore High Court Judge, Mr Justice (retired) Fazal-e-Miran Chauhan, in his capacity as an independent adjudicator, on Monday had announced his judgement in Saleem Malik’s appeal in relation to his plea that PCB should issue a Clearance Certificate in his favour.

“The appeal in hand is disposed of holding that PCB shall not use the transcripts dated 25-5-2000 against the appellant (Saleem Malik) without verifying the same against original tapes. PCB is further directed to decide the application of the appellant (Saleem Malik) for the post of batting coach, either way,” Justice Chauhan wrote in his 11-page judgement.

While sharing his thoughts on the decision, the 57-year-old, Malik, claimed that he has received job offers from various associate member countries.

“I have never asked the current PCB management for a job nor will I ever. My point of view was proved right as far as the transcripts are concerned. The board is beating around the bush rather than talking about the verdict. We had claimed in our appeal that the PCB was handling our case according to the transcripts provided by the ICC. The transcripts were baseless. The judge accepted our case in this regard. I have job offers from associate member countries. I will bring these offers to the board. I will then see what the PCB says,” Malik said.

“What was wrong with my attitude? I just wanted a means to earn an honest living. Did the board want me to bring a character certificate from the police? If the PCB does not cooperate then I have the option of approaching the country’s courts,” he added.

Meanwhile, Malik’s lawyer Saud Cheema stated that the former cricketer had never been given a life ban and this was a common misconception.

https://cricketpakistan.com.pk/en/n...tisfied-with-independent-adjudicators-verdict

 

[Savak]

Apparently Malik wanted a role in the PCB so that he could prevent the authorities from discriminating against his son because of his association with him. Then Malik talked about opening his academy or taking the batting coach role in the High Performance Centre.

Pakistan can benefit from Malik's Cricketing tactical mind and batting skills. He was a very under rated cricketer of his time.

 

[Savak]

I think the PCB higher up's i.e. Ehsan Mani, Wasim Khan should privately meet with Malik and settle this once and for all rather wasting time in these appeals and court battles. The guy has been out of the game for 20 years and if many other people in the Qayyum report can be accommodated then why not Salim Malik?

The guy has an excellent batting brain and will be useful in a batting coach role.

 

[BunnyRabbit]

I think the PCB higher up's i.e. Ehsan Mani, Wasim Khan should privately meet with Malik and settle this once and for all rather wasting time in these appeals and court battles. The guy has been out of the game for 20 years and if many other people in the Qayyum report can be accommodated then why not Salim Malik?

The guy has an excellent batting brain and will be useful in a batting coach role.

What if he entices the national cricketers into contact with shady guys from the past if he works at High Performance Centre. If he has done "match fixing" indeed, then no other option to have a life ban from working with the national team or PCB in any capacity. But he would rather be open to work with another country as per their own terms and choices etc Nepal, Sweden, UAE etc.
He is under ICC red list as well when he had applied for batting coach role, there was a report of ICC seeking clarification from PCB regarding this.

Moreover, the judicial system of Pakistan is the most inept and incompetent.

He was first banned for life in 2000. But his ban was overturned by High Court a decade or so ago without any clarification as to why the ban was lifted, as why the ban was placed in the first place, and did they even investigate the Qayum report and the charges he had on him.

It should be similar to Kaneria's case. He was banned permanently by ECB by trying to corrupt their local player.

An honest and hardworking man with good credentials whether local or foreign should be hired by PCB instead.

That's my opinion.

 

[MenInG]

LAHORE: Former national side captain Salim Malik has claimed that the decision of independent adjudicator of the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) in the ICC’s transcript case has gone in his favour and that he’ll now approach the board to grant him a ‘No Objection Certificate’ after claiming he had received a job offer from abroad.

“I will request the PCB to grant an NOC as I have got an offer [for a job] from abroad. Hopefully the board will oblige me because in my view Monday’s decision of adjudicator retired Justice Fazle Miran Chouhan has gone is in my favour,” Salim told a media conference here on Tuesday, a day after the announcement of verdict in the case based on a transcript of video cassettes recorded in April, 2000, allegedly having objectionable material relating to match-fixing scam.

“As Justice Chouhan in his order has said the cassettes [on the basis of which this case was filed] has no validity because it has never been verified by the ICC or the PCB in 20 years and until its verification these carries no weight, so till the verification’s result no case against me,” Saleem, who was accompanied by his panel of lawyers, further said.

He said what he had done wrong as he was fighting his case for the last 20 years just because he believed he was not guilty

“Why didn’t the PCB had asked for character certificates from other cricketers who were also fined by the Justice Malik Qayyum Commission? But the PCB not only appointed them on key posts in the past it did not receive the amount of fine yet from them. Whereas I am cleared by a court of law,” he said. “I am sorry to say that the media has never sought answers from those [penalized] cricketers and the PCB when they were appointed on those posts. However, the media have been repeatedly grilling just me, saying that I had been banned from cricket for life.”

He dispelled the impression created by the PCB in its press statement over the decision on Monday that he had to give a character certificate.

“I have been cleared by court of law and for the last many years I have the stance that the ICC’s transcript case against me is nothing as the PCB had never provided me the cassettes. And neither the PCB nor the ICC could get these cassettes verified in 20 years time,” he said.

Salim vowed if the PCB does not issue the NOC, he has other legal means to seek it, while adding he was never life ban since he was cleared from that ban in 2008 and the PCB did not challenge that decision of the court.

He said it was PCB’s job whether to verify the cassettes or not as the justice had only said that the PCB could not use these against him, until its verification.

Published in Dawn, October 28th, 2020