IndiaPost.com - Ban and racial charge dropped, Harbhajan only fined

ADELAIDE: India's firm stand paid off when racism charges against off-spinner Harbhajan Singh were dropped by a Judge who held him guilty of a much lighter offence of using offensive language for which he was fined, escaping a three-Test ban imposed on him earlier.

The ICC-appointed Appeals Commissioner Justice John Hansen heard for nearly five hours Harbhajan's appeal against the three-Test ban slapped on him by Match Referee Mike Procter during the Sydney Test earlier this month when he was accused of allegedly calling Australian all-rounder Andrew Symonds 'a monkey', and imposed on the off-spinner a fine of 50 percent of his match fee ending the controversy that had threatened to split the cricket world. The New Zealand High Court Judge's task was made easier by behind-the-scene efforts by the Australian cricket board and the BCCI to find a compromise in the shape of downgrading the charge against Harbhajan from racial abuse (section 3.3 of ICC Code of Conduct) to that of using language which is offensive and of seriously insulting nature (section 2.8).

This compromise was reportedly presented to Hansen at the hearing. A delighted BCCI, which had raised the stakes by announcing that the Indian team would be called back home if the racial charge was not withdrawn, promptly welcomed the Commissioner's verdict and declared that the rest of the Australia tour would go ahead.

"The BCCI was firm on its stance that racism charges levelled against Harbhajan should be totally dropped. Had the charges stuck, they would have reflected badly on the BCCI and the nation at large," said, V R Manohar, BCCI-appointed lawyer for the off-spinner, here after the conclusion of the appeals hearing in Adelaide.

"He (Harbhajan) admitted to have hurled abuses (of non-racial nature) against the first aggressor Andrew Symonds. Once the level of the Code of Conduct charges was reduced from 3.3 to 2.8, it was left to Justice (John) Hansen to hand out appropriate punishment for the offence under which he now stood charged.

"It varied between the higher end - a ban of two ODIs and one Test - and 50 per cent of the match fees. Since he had not been charged since 1998 (Under the CoC) the lowest level of punishment was meted out which worked out to 50 per cent of match fees," Manohar explained. Manohar said BCCI was concerned about its image and fought for it.

"BCCI only said that the racial abuse charges against Harbhajan affected its image and the nation." While welcoming the outcome of the hearing, chief selector Dilip Vengsarkar demanded action against Match Referee Procter, who found Harbhajan guilty and slapped a three-Test ban on him. "The racist tag has been removed and it is a good thing for us.

Full marks to BCCI for standing behind Harbhajan the entire time," he told Times Now news channel. "Procter has not done his duty properly. I would like to know what action is being taken against him," he said. Vengsarkar backed the Indian players for defying sledging by the mighty Australians during the Test series.

"Indians are not the first to sledge their opponents but again we would not take anything lying down. It's very clear in the message," he said Due to previous good conduct The fact that Harbhajan Singh had not been booked under the International Cricket Council's Code of Conduct after 1998 saved him from getting a bigger punishment after the charges of racism leveled against him were dropped; it was revealed by the Cricket Board today.

Manohar defended Harbhajan via a teleconference while seated in the BCCI headquarters here when the hearing was held in Adelaide. "Statements were taken from Sachin Tendulkar and Harbhajan from the Indian side while the Australian side was represented by Symonds, captain Ricky Ponting, Matthew Hayden and Michael Clarke," he added.