BPL opening ceremony canceled due to security concerns

The opening ceremony of the upcoming 13th edition of the Bangladesh Premier League (BPL) has been canceled.

Bangladesh Cricket Board (BCB) has taken this decision due to security concerns in the current political and social situation in the country.

The grand opening ceremony was scheduled to be organized at the Sher-e-Bangla National Cricket Stadium in Mirpur on December 24.

According to relevant sources, organizing a large-scale public event is considered risky in the current situation. Especially since it is the day before BNP acting chairman Tarique Rahman returns home, there is a possibility of leaders and activists from all over the country gathering in Dhaka.

In this context, the BCB has not received the necessary high-level clearance or 'green signal' from the government to organize the opening ceremony of the BPL.

Although the organizers had completed all technical and logistical preparations, the decision to cancel the event was taken considering the overall security and surrounding situation.

Sources said that there were concerns that it might be difficult to deploy adequate law enforcement forces at the BPL opening ceremony in the current political and social reality.

Earlier, December 20 and 23 were discussed as possible dates for holding the opening ceremony. However, those proposals were also canceled due to security risks and concerns that it might be difficult to control the crowd outside the stadium.

In the end, the BCB finalized the decision to cancel the opening ceremony of BPL 13 after not receiving formal approval from the government.