Updated on
Summary
The government on Saturday barred the chief election commissioner (CEC) and secretary election commission from visiting India to protest the snubbing of the countrys cricketers at the Indian Premier League (IPL) auction. The CEC, Justice (retd) Hamid Ali Mirza, and secretary Ishtiaq Ahmad Khan were about to leave for New Delhi at 2.30am today when they were stopped by the government at the Allama Iqbal Airport, Lahore. Sources said the CEC had been invited by his Indian counterpart for participating in the 60th anniversary celebrations of the Indian republic. During his six-day stay in India, Mirza was scheduled to meet with a number of officials. Mirza and Khan later left for Islamabad by road. Eleven Pakistani cricketers did not find any takers at the IPL auction in Mumbai earlier this week, sparking outrage in the country. As immediate fallout of this, the visit of parliamentary delegation to India was cancelled.
