The Bangladesh Cricket Board (BCB) suspended fast bowler Shahadat Hossain from participating in the ongoing National Cricket League after he assaulted teammate Arafat Sunny during a first-class match between Dhaka Division and Khulna Division at the Sheikh Abu Naser Stadium in Khulna. According to a report published in cricbuzz.com, Hossain is now expected to face a one-year ban as he has accepted to have committed a Level 4 offence as stated in the BCB's code of conduct.

"Under the level four offences a player will be banned from participating in any BCB competition for one year while he will be slapped with a fine of Taka 50,000," a BCB official was quoted as saying by cricbuzz.com.

The match referee Akhtar Ahmed has sent his report to the BCB claiming that he has no authority to punish Hossain as his offence falls under level 4.

"The match referee has no authority to punish Shahadat for what he has done. His offence falls under level 4 offence," the match referee told reporters.

"This is a big offence because it is not something like a bad gesture or an abuse. He kicked his teammate. Now it has been sent to BCB. The board will decide whether to punish him after the evidence and verification of the incident," added the match referee.

This is not the first time Shahadat Hossain has been involved in such a controversy. In 2015, he was jailed for torturing a 11-year-old domestic help, which led to the BCB banning him from all forms of cricket.

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The ban, however, was lifted by the BCB on humanitarian grounds as the case was still under jurisdiction and Shahadat was allowed to play the domestic matches.

However, a year later in November 2016, the 33-year-old fast bowler was acquitted as the prosecution failed to prove him and his wife guilty.