- Friday, April 19, 2024
By: Sattwik Biswal
A whistleblowing hotline will be opened on Monday by Yorkshire County Cricket club for victims of discrimination.
The decision to open up the hotline was announced last Monday by the Club’s new chair Lord Patel, and has urged other victims to “come forward and share their experiences”.
Patel says hearing from victims will “guide” how Yorkshire as a club will “move forward”.
Mohinderpal Sethi QC has been appointed to lead an independent investigation, the club said.
Lord Patel released a statement on Friday (12) and said: “Setting up an independent whistleblowing hotline will allow there to be a safe space for people to come forward, secure in the knowledge that their complaint will be taken seriously, and I am happy to say that we have been able to put this in place within the week.
“Mohinderpal Sethi QC is eminently qualified in this area, and brings a wealth of experience as well as being completely independent from the club.
“We are very pleased that he has taken on the role, which is a vital first step towards ensuring that we can move forward from our past, to hear from those who have suffered, and to take action.
“I am determined to make the club an inclusive and diverse environment for everyone with a passion for county cricket.”
The appointment of Sethi and opening up a hotline has been addition to the recent developments to the timeline of racism scandal at Yorkshire.
A report found that former player Azeem Rafiq was a victim of “racial harassment and bullying”, but the club said it won’t take disciplinary action against any of the member of the staff.
Since then chief executive Mark Arthur and chairman Roger Hutton have both resigned, as coach Andrew Gale was suspended by the club for a historical tweet in 2010.
England Test captain on Thursday (11) said during his entire time at Yorkshire as player he could not recall ever witnessing racism.
When asked if he had seen racism during his time at the club, he said: “Not that I can recall, no… but it’s clear things have happened at the club.”
In response to Root’s comments, Rafiq tweeted: “Disappointed is not even the feeling. Incredibly hurt. But uncomfortable truths are hard to accept it seems.”
After Rafiq, former Pakistan pacer Rana Naved-ul-Hasan was the second player to allege racism at Yorkshire, who claimed “systematic taunting” happened at the club.
Former academy players at Yorkshire – Irfan Amjad and Tabassum Bhatti have also shared their experiences of suffering racism at the club.
On 16 November, Rafiq and senior Yorkshire officials will give evidence at a Digital, Culture, Media and Sport select committee.
