Michael Vaughan removed from BBC show after racism allegation

Former England cricketer Michael Vaughan has been removed from the Radio 5 Tuffers and Vaughan show for BBC after his name was dragged into the ‘Azeem Rafiq racism issue’. It has been alleged that Vaughan told Asian players that there were too many of their kind and something needs to be done regarding the same.

Also, another Yorkshire cricketer, Rana Naved-ul-Hasan confirmed that he had heard Vaughan passing racist comments against some Asian players in 2009. The BBC also released a statement on the matter as well.

In the statement, the BBC said that they are not a part of the investigation, and do not have access to the report submitted. The statement also added that BBC is aware of the allegation that has been levied on the former England skipper.

“The allegation against Michael Vaughan predates his time working for the BBC, we were not part of the investigation conducted by Yorkshire County Cricket Club and we have had no access to the subsequent report. However, we were made aware of a single allegation which Michael strongly denies and we have been monitoring the situation closely,” read the statement released by the BBC.

We need to maintain the impartiality of the programme: BBC statement

The BBC statement also added that Vaughan will not be appearing on the show since he has been personally involved in a racism allegation and the show focuses on current cricketing topics. The statement also stated that BBC will remain in touch with Vaughan and his team.

“We have made the editorial decision that Michael won’t appear as a presenter on 5 live’s Tuffer’s and Vaughan show on Monday. The show focuses on topical discussion around current cricketing matters and given his personal involvement, we need to ensure we maintain the impartiality of the programme. We remain in discussion with Michael and his team,” concluded the statement.

Vaughan said that the allegations were made ‘out of the blue’ and were made more than a decade after he was alleged to have used the racist comment. Vaughan has strongly denied the accusation.

“That the allegation came completely out of the blue and more than a decade after it was alleged to have happened made it all the more difficult to process. I completely and categorically deny that I ever said those words,” said Vaughan.