The Pakistan Sports Ministry has said it has no objection if the Pakistani cricketers decide to take part in the second edition of the Indian Premier League (IPL) in April but made it clear that their security would be their own and respective IPL team's responsibility.
Sports Minister Pir Aftab Shah Jillani said in an interview that the Ministry had sent its recommendations on a note moved by the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) to the President's Secretariat.
"The Board moved a note through the Presidency wanting to know if we would allow our players to take part in the IPL this year," Jillani said.
"We have given our answer which is that the players can individually decide what they want to do and we have no objections to them going to India for the IPL matches," he said.
"The Board has asked for our comments for individual players and not a national team so we have given our NOC and sent it to the President's Secretariat for further action," he added.
To a question, Jillani made it clear that the President's Secretariat is fully authorised to issue a guideline or policy for the players to participate in the IPL.
He explained that earlier the Ministry didn't allow the national hockey and squash teams to travel to India for international tournaments because they had to take into consideration the tense relations between India and Pakistan in the aftermath of the Mumbai terror attacks.
The PCB had moved the note to the Ministry seeking guidance after the IPL authorities asked it to confirm if Pakistani players were allowed by their government to take part in the IPL.
The IPL authorities had made it clear that if Pakistani players were stopped by their government from playing in the Twenty20 tournament they would not be paid anything but if they couldn't take part in the league because of Indian government's directive they would be fully compensated.
