Calcutta: The International Cricket Council (ICC) has thrown its weight behind Justice John Hansen, who dropped racist charges on Harbhajan Singh, saying the appeals commissioner’s judgement was “independent” and he did not yield to any pressure.

ICC chief executive Malcolm Speed said in a statement on Wednesday that the world governing body endorsed the judgement of Justice Hansen.

Speed has also urged players to learn from the row over Harbhajan and improve their on-field behaviour.

The following is the statement from Speed:

“Justice Hansen’s judgement is a rigorous and independent document which clearly states the reasons for finding Harbhajan guilty of using abusive language against another player but not guilty of making a racist comment.

The ICC endorses Justice Hansen’s view that the ICC Code of Conduct is a robust and sound process designed to ensure a fair hearing for players. As Justice Hansen rightly points out, Code of Conduct Commissioners carry out their functions independently of the ICC and all other interested parties. I would like to thank Justice Hansen for performing his duties under the code with all due professionalism and expertise.

Justice Hansen makes the valid point that the appeal hearing was very different to that which occurred in front of the Match Referee Mike Procter. The fact the charge was downgraded from a Level 3.3 to Level 2.8 is not a reflection on the process or Mr Procter’s original finding.

It is very unfortunate that human error led to Justice Hansen not having the full history of Harbhajan’s previous Code of Conduct breaches and the ICC accepts responsibility for this mistake.

One thing that has come out of this is the need for players to review their on-field behaviour. In this case, it is clear that Harbhajan verbally abused an opponent having been provoked to do so by that opponent. This is not acceptable behaviour on the cricket field. I expect all players to use this was a wake-up call that on-field behaviour must improve.”