LAHORE: Britain has denied the baby son of Pakistan's jailed former captain Salman Butt a visa, crushing the family's hopes of visiting him behind bars, his father said Tuesday.
Butt and two of his other team mates, Mohammad Amir and Mohammad Asif, were sentenced by a British court last November for spot fixing during the 2010 Lord's Test against England.
Butt was sentenced for 30 months and Asif for 12 months. Amir served half his six-month suspended sentence and was released last month.
Butt's father Zulfiqar said his daughter-in-law Gul “wanted to take both her sons to meet their father but the youngest son Ayan was refused a visa by the British High Commission for a second time”.
Ayan was born just minutes after Butt was sentenced on November 3 last year and he has never seen his father.
Zulfiqar said the mother and the elder son had valid visas.
“The refusal of a visa for the younger son has halted their visit and we are considering appealing on humanitarian grounds,” Zulfiqar told AFP.
The British High Commission in Islamabad said it could not comment on individual visa applications.
COMMENTS (38)
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Pakistan summon the British Ambassador and demand an inquiry in the matter. Despite Salman being a criminal, it does not take away his basic human rights. Visitation is a VERY basic human right.
Unacceptable and disgusting behavior by Brits!
Such a big cost for such a customary thing in cricket. Our past heroes, our current playing 11, all involved in at least 1 ocassion of manipulating the results and fooling the fans.
Why do we care? maybe jail isnt the best place to visit your dad for the first time anyway. Doesnt seem like a great first meet story for the poor kid.
You know we act like this is a violation of rights not to be given a visa. Its not really, its a privalege which has to be earned , and Butt seniors actions show that this is a person whose morals are selective at best. That is usually not the sort of person who contributes well to society. We are obviously regressing as asociety because of the way we tolerate this lack of morality and are paying the price. Better luck next time baby Butt!
@Yaida: listen make all the jokes about Butt you want lets not bring his kids into it. Its not their fault their dad is a cheat and a crook and its something they'll have to live with for the rest of their lives.
all people are talking just foolish. Question is what you people talking here has given Pakistan... answer is nothing except betrayal.
In a country where everyone is corrupt from a shopkeeper to a prime minister and president, what can one hope from people like our nation, who get insulted and betrayed everyday more from insider than outsider.
Everyone of us is destroying Pakistan more than our corrupt leaders and outsider terrorists in shape of NATO, ISAF and jewish USA...
He is already imprisoned for his sins. at least he is better than our government. They were our heroes and i still have loads of respect for them. They are in prison because they got caught, you never know how many more heroes are involved in this bog.
@alicia: Not that Baby Butt - who is less than a year old, can tell a jail from his home. For that matter, he won't be able to tell his father apart from the other criminals either !
Sorry story. All I can, Salman you sold your country, what about those young children watching TV to see their team win, when all is going against Pakistan may be Cricket was only hope and you ruined that as well for some dollars and pounds. Hopefully, your story will prevent these actions in future. You were privileged to play for Pakistan and you betrayed us!
Salman is guilty correct but about the reports about country cricket involved in fixing and how some one is sure that British players are not involved in gambling as players of every country are accused for fixing matches. If Salman, Asif and Aamir would have been British national they were not going to be punished or at least not as severely as Pakistani players.@naveed khan:
I know people who are working mainly in Middle East countries where they have to live away from their families for 2-3 years before they come back for holidays.My father was a labour in UAE and used to come home after 2-3 years.This is crook is in jail and he brought shame for Pakistan therefore he should face the consequences although i have full sympthy with his young family.
@Naveed Khan
Dude u need to read up more on it..... UK..... seriously and what about all the criminals hiding under the umbrella of asylum laws.....
@alicia: No it is not.
great work by the Bristish immigration. With a visa for baby butt, the whole famiily can apply for asylum on humanatarian ground of facing threats in Pakistan, and Papa Butt wont have to come here to face the music. Well done.
doesn't make any sense to me. agreed the adult has criminal records, but what a baby has to do with his father's crime. nowadays we just go by rule book and lost humanity. very sad.
Even our Heroes are cheats,what a country, who will put us right.
@Uza Syed: we all make mistakes and we learn from them
@naveed khan: it's about human son, and not of criminal son. even criminal have basic human rights. what you want to do for his crime? hang him?
he is in the jail and serviing his punishment. but he has every right to meet his family and his sons.
wonder why we smell blood in every thing. there are bigger cirminal in pakistan and more of them in the govt.
grow up and grow your mind. child.
With PCB not doing the job of enforcing fair play, our cricketers turned crooked criminals and brought shame and disgrace to Pakistan. This is a lesson for PCB too!
As you sow, so you reap! Ayan must wait to see his jailed father.
@Much Amused: You are so right. It is obvious that Salman wanted his family to come to the UK in the pretext of seeing him and later apply for asylum citing threats to his life due to match fixing charges ! Nice catch !!
@talha malik: Well said !!
What did Baby Butt do?? Unless it was a humane decision by the British authorities to spare the child the embarrassment of seeing his papa in jail.
@Pakistan politics: "single mistake"?!---here you are talking about a 'professional'-----criminal!
what has a child done for his visa to be refused. that's ridiculous.
The probable reason the visa was denied was to deter the family from claiming asylum in UK. With one child in Pakistan it would be hard for them to claim asylum while visiting Butt. The British authorities have become smart to this game.
@talha malik: EXACTLY!!!!!!!!!
You never imagine where a single mistake can take u
The man who betrayed his country for dollars doesn't deserve any sympathy or special treatment.Appropriate decision taken by the english govt., it's time our govt. started treating law breakers in this way also. These people need to be condemned as much as possible.
Neither Salman has seen his newly born son. Cant understand as to why the visa was refused to his son.
okay I have no sympathy for Salman Butt but this is a load of crap.
Don't know if its a good idea to take a child to see his father for the first time in a jail.