LAHORE: Pakistan cricketer Sharjeel Khan, facing spot-fixing inquiry, submitted his answering brief to the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) Anti-Corruption Tribunal on Wednesday while another player Khalid Latif, facing the same inquiry, did not appear before the tribunal.

A press release issued by the PCB on Wednesday stated, “Earlier in the day, Mr Tafazzul Rizvi, counsel for the PCB, filed a reply brief before the Anti-Corruption Tribunal on behalf of the Board.

“Mr Khalid Latif and his counsel Mr Badar Alam had already informed the Tribunal that they would be unable to attend the hearing and had requested the Tribunal that a copy of the reply brief be forwarded to them. This request was granted by the Tribunal. Day to day hearings shall commence from May 19, 2017.

“Later, Mr Sharjeel Khan, through his counsel Mr Shaigan Ejaz, filed his answering brief before the Tribunal and copies of the same were also provided to the Board.

“Under the Code, PCB, if it so desires, may file a reply brief to Mr Sharjeel Khan’s answering brief by May 13, 2017. Day to day hearings shall commence from May 15, 2017, onwards.”

Meanwhile, Sharjeel Khan’s lawyer said he had reservations over investigation by the PCB in the spot-fixing case, but they would not move court to get remedy.

The lawyer said in his answer, “We raised the point that the PCB Codes of Conduct are against the Constitution of Pakistan.

“We reject all the allegations levelled by the PCB on Sharjeel.”

The lawyer said his client did not breach any code of conduct.

He added that he had submitted replies of expert witnesses like Australia’s ex-cricketer Dean Jones and Pakistan’s two former players Sadiq Mohammad and Mohammad Yousuf.

Meanwhile, PCB’s lawyer claimed that Sharjeel had accepted that he had met a bookie.

Four cricketers, namely Shahzaib Hasan, Nasir Jamshed besides Sharjeel and Khalid, are facing allegations of spot-fixing, reported during the second edition of the PSL held in Dubai this year.

The fifth cricketer Mohammad Irfan had confessed to his mistake of not reporting timely to the PCB that a bookie had made a contact with him. He has been penalised with one-year ban on playing cricket and a cash penalty of Rs1 million.

However, four other cricketers are still claiming that they are innocent.

Khalid has already expressed his reservations over the code of conduct about the punishment.

Now Sharjeel’s lawyer has also raised the same complaint.

Published in Dawn, May 11th, 2017