‘No ban on IPL broadcast in Bangladesh’, says Zahir Swapan:Bangladesh government lifts ban on IPL telecast ahead of season opener

Ahead of the IPL 2026 season opener between Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB) and Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH), there is a good news for cricket fans in Bangladesh as the newly appointed Information and Broadcasting Minister Zahir Uddin Swapan has clarified that there is no restriction on telecasting the Indian Premier League (IPL) in the country. The statement comes after confusion over the IPL broadcast following an earlier ban imposed by the previous interim government after the Mustafizur Rahman row. Many fans and broadcasters were unsure whether the World’s biggest T20 cricket tournament would be available in Bangladesh this season. Now, the government has made its position clear, stating that there is no intention to stop the broadcast and that decisions will be made based on commercial interests rather than political reasons. Bangladesh government open to IPL telecast Swapan explained that no official request has been made yet to broadcast the IPL in Bangladesh. However, he assured that any such request would be considered positively. Also read: Can gritty Gill, super Siraj bring glory for Gujarat Titans?:Consistency key for 2022 champions; GT SWOT analysis “No one applied to us to telecast the IPL. We don’t want to mix politics with sport. We will look at it from a commercial perspective and if any channel applies to telecast the IPL, we will consider it positively,” Swapan was quoted as saying by Deutsche Welle. His comments suggest that the government is open to allowing both local and international broadcasters to air the tournament. Green signal for Star Sports to broadcast When asked specifically about Star Sports, which traditionally holds IPL broadcasting rights, Swapan made it clear that there would be no restrictions. “We will not bar anyone from telecasting it. If Star Sports want to telecast it, they can. If any of our channels want to telecast it, we will take it positively, but we will not force anything,” he said. This means that viewers in Bangladesh could soon be able to watch IPL matches again if broadcasters move forward with the required permissions. Cable operators also support telecast in Bangladesh The Cable Operators Association of Bangladesh has also supported this stance. Office secretary Rezaul Karim Lablu confirmed that they have not received any instructions to stop IPL broadcasts. “If Star Sports telecast the IPL in Bangladesh, they can do it because no one has asked us to stop it,” Lablu said. Also read: RCB take on SRH in blockbuster season opener:No opening ceremony, Virat Kohli’s men up against Abhishek Sharma’s army He also pointed out that previous restrictions are no longer valid under the current government. “Those directives of the interim government do not have any value. If this government asks us to stop it, we will do so, because the previous government’s directives are no longer in place,” he added. Previous ban no longer effective Earlier, the Professor Yunus-led interim government had banned the IPL broadcast in Bangladesh, which created uncertainty among fans and broadcasters. However, with the new administration taking charge, that decision appears to have been reversed in practice.