ASSEMBLY POLL '98
COMMENTARY
SPECIALS
INTERVIEWS
CAPITAL BUZZ
REDIFF POLL
DEAR REDIFF
THE STATES
YEH HAI INDIA!
ELECTIONS '98
ARCHIVES

Thackeray gives Indo-Pak cricket a year's lease of life

Decks were cleared for the India-Pakistan cricket series with the Shiv Sena chief Bal Thackeray agreeing to suspend his party's protests against the matches, for this year only.

After a meeting at Bombay's Hotel Airport Centaur between Thackeray and Union Home Minister Lal Krishna Advani that lasted more than an hour, the former decided to revoke the ban on the Indo-Pak cricket series for one year only. The Pakistani team is arriving in the country tonight.

After the meeting of the two leaders, the architect of the Shiv Sena-Bharatiya Janata Party alliance in the state and Union Information and Broadcasting Minister Pramod Mahajan read out a joint statement of Advani and Thackeray to reporters.

In response to the request made by Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee, the Sena chief Bal Thackeray has decided to suspend protest moves against the series of matches between India and Pakistan for this year only, the statement stated.

Thackeray asked the Shiv Sainiks to suspend forthwith the agitation against the cricket series between India and Pakistan, and congratulated them for the protests by them all over the country.

Among those who were present at the meeting included Maharashtra Chief Minister Manohar Joshi, Deputy Chief Minister Gopinath Munde, Mahajan and the Sena chief's son Uddhav, and his nephew Raj Thackeray. The meeting lasted for over an hour.

Photographs courtsey: Sunday Observer

UNI

Tell us what you think of this report