Shakib joins event on return from US in possible breach of quarantine

Cricketer Shakib Al Hasan has joined the inauguration of a superstore in Dhaka’s Gulshan hours after arriving from the US, raising questions over whether he has breached quarantine rules.

Crowds of people, many without a mask on, gathered around him also without maintaining social distancing at the inauguration around 11:30am on Friday.

He landed in the airport sometime after 2am amid the coronavirus pandemic.

In photos posted to Facebook Shakib could be seen without a mask on once during the inauguration.

Dr Mushtuq Husain, a public health expert currently advising the government’s disease control agency IEDCR on COVID-19, was surprised at what Shikib has done.

A person must go into home quarantine for 14 days after arriving in Bangladesh if he or she has a coronavirus-negative test report, Husain said, citing the government rule.

Those without a coronavirus-negative test report need to stay under institutional quarantine.

“I don’t know how he (Shakib) has done it,” Dr Husain said.

Shakib could offer no explanation for his action when bdnews24.com reached him.

Like other players and staff members, Bangladesh Cricket Board has made arrangements for Shakib’s fitness test on Monday, supposing that he would be in quarantine until then.

When coaches arrived from abroad recently, they joined practice after days in quarantine and COVID-19 test following the rules.

Akram Khan, the chief of BCB’s Cricket Operation Committee, however, said the board does not have anything to say about Shakib’s action as he was not in BCB’s bio-bubble.

The allrounder had been in quarantine after returning from the US in September. He had practised at the BKSP after testing positive for coronavirus later.