IPL- Jayalalithaa has her way, Lankan players won’t play in Chennai

Mangalore Today/CNN-IBN

New Delhi, March 26: The Indian Premier League (IPL) Governing Council on Tuesday decided against fielding Sri Lankan players in Chennai following security concerns after Tamil Nadu Chief Minister Jayalalithaa barred them from the State. However, sources said that the Sri Lankan players will be allowed to play in other states.

Jayalalithaa had played the Tamil card and wrote to Prime Minister Manmohan Singh demanding that no Sri Lankan player should play the IPL matches in her state. Raking up the alleged war crimes committed by Sri Lankan armed forces against Tamils in the war against the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE), Jayalalithaa said that there was a lot of anger in the state against what happened in the island nation.

 

In her letter, Jayalalithaa said, "In view of the popular antipathy and anger in Tamil Nadu against the actions of the Government of Sri Lanka, the Government of Tamil Nadu is of the view that IPL matches involving Sri Lankan players, umpires and other officials should not be played in Tamil Nadu. The Government of Tamil Nadu will permit IPL matches to be held in Tamil Nadu, only if the organizers provide an undertaking that no Sri Lankan players, umpires, officials or support staff would participate in these matches".

Earlier in February, Jayalalithaa had cancelled the Asian Athletics meet saying Sri Lankan players would not be allowed in Tamil Nadu. The AIADMK supremo had also asked the Central government to move amendments to the US-backed resolution on Sri Lanka over war crimes against ethnic Tamils. "Don’t just support the US-backed resolution on Lankan Tamils issue at UNHRC, but strengthen it through suitable amendments," Jayalalithaa had written in a letter to PM Manmohan. India finally voted against Sri Lanka at the United Nation Human Rights Council (UNHRC) in Geneva.

List of Sri Lankan players contracted to the eight IPL teams:

Sun Risers - Hyderabad:

Kumara Sangakkara

Thisera Perera

Kolkata Knight Riders:

Sachithra Senanayake

Chennai Super Kings:

Akila Dananjaya

Nuwan Kulasekara

Delhi Daredevils:

Mahela Jayawardene

Jeevan Mendis

Mumbai Indians:

Lasith Malinga

Pune Warriors:

Angelo Mathews

Ajantha Mendis

Rajasthan Royals:

Kusal Perera

Royal Challengers Bangalore:

Tilekaratne Dilshan

Muttiah Muralitharan