Besides being a cricketer, Shakib Al Hasan is also known for his involvement in politics and business. Since the political shift in August last year, Shakib has not been able to return to Bangladesh. Several cases have been filed against him during this period. In a recent interview with an English daily, he opened up about these issues.
When asked about his business ventures in Bangladesh outside of cricket, Shakib explained, “I couldn’t focus much on anything beyond cricket, so naturally I wasn’t very attentive to business or profit. I’m involved in two businesses — one is my crab farm, and the other is share trading.”
Shakib claimed that his crab business was doing well before the COVID-19 pandemic. At that time, he had no outstanding loan payments. However, the pandemic halted operations and caused significant losses due to damaged products. In his words, “Right now, the situation is that I own 35% of the farm, and the remaining 65% belongs to others. But for some reason, people only know the name of Shakib Al Hasan. No one mentions the names of the other people involved.”
He further added, “They should’ve talked to the partners and tried to understand the real issue. But somehow, all the blame falls on me just because my name is attached to the company.”
Regarding the unpaid bank loan taken under the company’s name, Shakib said, “People owe banks hundreds of crores. But here, it’s just 4.5 crore taka. Based on my 35% ownership, I only need to pay around 1.2 crore taka. But I don’t consider the way my property was seized to be normal.”
In March this year, Dhaka’s Chief Metropolitan Magistrate (CMM) court ordered the seizure of Shakib’s property in a case filed over non-payment of dues and alleged cheque fraud.
“I don’t think I committed any crime. The situation was different back then. Now that everything has calmed down, people are beginning to see that no one should be punished like this over a single photo,” said Shakib.
When asked about his share trading business, Shakib responded to media reports from last November, which claimed he was fined 50 lakh taka for manipulation in the stock market. He responded, “If anyone can prove I personally committed any manipulation, I’ll give up everything I own. I don’t even know how manipulation works in Bangladesh’s stock market, and I don’t have any trading apps on my phone.”
He continued, “I gave someone money to invest on my behalf, but the entire investment resulted in a loss. If anyone can prove I withdrew even a single taka from the stock market, I’ll gladly hand over everything I own.”
Shakib made it clear he doesn’t want to run from the issue. “I want to come forward and resolve everything. I deserve that chance. If they give me the opportunity, I’ll appreciate it… I don’t think I committed any crime. The situation was different then. Now that things are calm, people realize no one should be punished over just a photo.”
And is he willing to cooperate with any investigation? Shakib replied, “Of course. Whatever information they need, I’m ready to provide — whether about the crab farm or the share business. If they think I need to return for a proper investigation, I’m more than willing. I’m not hiding anything, nor am I fleeing with anything stolen.”
