Captain of Pakistan blind cricket team discharged
The captain of the Pakistan cricket team for the blind, Zeeshan Abbasi, who was admitted to Bangalore’s M. S. Ramaiah hospital early
Saturday morning after he allegedly consumed 'soap detergent' at breakfast mistaking it for drinking water, has been discharged.
Pakistani team manager Bilal Satti said the hotel management, where the team is staying, had apologised for the mistake and added that his team considers that the “matter is now resolved”.
Earlier, confusion surrounded the circumstances under which the bottle containing the liquid was picked up by the Pakistani blind cricketer at the hotel.
Speaking to The Hindu on Saturday afternoon, Dr Naresh Shetty, Associate Dean of the M.S. Ramaiah Hospital, said the liquid taken by Mr Abassi "was not acid" as it was initially feared by the Pakistani team management. Consumption of acid would have produced a much more serious reaction that Mr Abbasi did not exhibit, Dr Shetty added.
The hospital however, could not confirm what the contaminant was, as they did not have samples.
But, the management of the Moevenpick hotel and Spa, where the Pakistani cricket team is staying for the T 20 World Cup for the Blind since December 2,
profusely apologised for the incident and sought to clarify that the liquid consumed by Mr Abbasi was a soap detergent meant to clean the glass window panes in the hotel.
The hospital bulletin said the patient was brought with a “history of soreness of throat following consumption of 2 sips of white liquid accidentally”. An endoscopy carried out on the patient was reported as normal with the patient fully conscious and his vitals stable. He was discharged after about seven hours of hospitalisation.
Initial quotes from Mr Bilal Satti suggesting that Mr. Abbasi was 'served cleaning acid' had sparked apprehensions that the team, which had thumped India by eight wickets the previous day, had been targeted by miscreants.
Speaking to the media, Pakistan team manager Bilal Satti said, “We arrived at 7 am for breakfast in the hotel – these water bottles were the brand we have been using throughout our visit. It appears that there was some cleaning acid in the bottle. It so happened that the captain drank the water – it could have been any of the players who consumed the contaminated the water.” He spat out the liquid when he realised that it was not water, he added.
Due to play against Bangladesh in a league match on Saturday, he proceeded to the match venue with the rest of the team. However, he complained of soreness in the throat and the team management rushed him to the M.S. Ramaiah hospital. M.S. Ramaiah Hospital are the health partners for the tournament and hospital ambulances are stationed at all venues of the international tournament.
Mr. Biswajith Chakraborty, the GM of Move N Pick hotel, told the media that the soap detergent was being used to clean window glass panes at the hotel. Mr. Abbasi consumed two sips, and later complained to the hotel management. It could not be confirmed if the liquid was placed at the team's breakfast table, or if Mr. Abbasi picked up the bottle elsewhere.
G.K. Mahantesh General, Secretary of the Cricket Association for the Blind in India (CABI) and founder of the Samarthanam Turst for the Disabled, who are organizing the 10-day tournament, termed the incident as "shocking and embarrassing". He said: “All players are important to us.
The Movenpick Hotel have promised an internal inquiry and we await the results.” Mr Mahantesh added the "strictest of actions" will be taken against those responsible for the incident.
Asked about the possibility of Mr Abassi having been targeted, Mr Mahantesh said “I don’t think so. In India we appreciate victory irrespective of who wins. It was good match yesterday – both teams played well and everybody enjoyed themselves.”
Mr Satti also refused to comment on the possibility of vendetta saying he had not heard from the Pakistan High Commissioner yet and added that he expected details on what exactly happened soon.
The Hindu : Cities / Bangalore : Captain of Pakistan blind cricket team discharged