MODI OUT, BUT WHO WILL FIX THE BIGGER MESS?

On Sunday night when Kieron Pollard was trying to play the innings of his life in the final few overs to take Mumbai Indians home, another man in the stadium was also trying everything possible in the book to save his job as the chief of IPL. But for Lalit Modi this time around all his shots had failed. The BCCI just a few minutes after the final ball was bowled at the D.Y. Patil stadium clean bowled Modi. He was e-mailed his suspension letter which effectively meant that he could not attend the bigger final on Monday- the IPL governing council meeting.

The suspension of Lalit Modi without even given a chance to offer an explanation is definitely unfair. True, the man ran the IPL like his own private business and if the
allegations against him turn out to be true then he should be tried and punished for the same. No matter how big is the crime, the accused is always given a chance to defend himself under a fair trial and even Modi deserves a chance.

But the biggest highlight of the whole series of ugly events has been the manner in which the BCCI has crucified one man for the whole IPL mess. No doubt Lalit Modi was the chief of IPL and he is the prime accused but it was not only Modi who was running the IPL. There are twelve other members on the governing council of the IPL which include the BCCI president Shashank Manohar, three strong politicians & three former Indian captains. So how can all of them be given a clean chit that too by themselves? Isn’t the BCCI president who heads the cricket board morally responsible for what has happened? Shouldn’t the whole governing council resign so that a ‘fair’ investigation can take place? Shashank Manohar said in the press conference that the reason for Modi’s suspension is to have a ‘fair’ investigation without any hindrances. Doesn’t that apply to the whole IPL governing council?

The end result- the IPL governing council remains intact minus Modi, with some of its members being promoted and given bigger responsibilities. How can this council be trusted when they failed to question the very functioning of the same IPL in the last three years? This is one of the biggest failures on the corporate governance front. The whole issue of corporate governance was raised during the ‘Satyam’ fiasco and its back to haunt us again.

The issue is not restricted to the IPL only. This issue also raises doubts on the whole functioning of the BCCI. Many would argue that BCCI is a private body and therefore is not accountable. The fact that they run the most popular sport of this nation makes it mandatory for them to be accountable to the people of this country. Because cricket is not their private property- it belongs to the whole nation which adores the sport. The BCCI is accountable to the government for the simple fact that the government has exempted BCCI to pay taxes being a private trust. The government also provides them all kinds of facilities from stadiums to police security for matches and does not charge them a penny even though it’s run by a private body. And thanks to all these exemptions, BCCI is the second richest sports body in the world with annual revenues running into billion of dollars.

And finally, why is it that Shashi Tharoor had to resign? Doesn’t that rule apply to Pawar & Patel whose names have cropped up during the last few weeks? Or will the Congress this time again stifle under coalition pressure like it did during the A Raja controversy on the telecom 2G spectrum front sometime back. The government will have to ensure that a thorough enquiry is conducted not only into the IPL but the whole functioning of BCCI. This is a golden opportunity for the government to clean the stinking corruption embedded in cricket administration which is so essential for the sport to grow. If it fails to do so then cricket would continue to remain the golden goose which will keep giving golden eggs to a handful of politicians & businessmen of this country.

THAROOR PAYS THE PRICE, BUT WILL MODI SURVIVE?

It was Modi’s in swinging yorker that saw Tharoor’s middle stump flying out of the ground. Many would term Tharoor’s resignation as a victory for Lalit Modi & the BJP. But the fact remains that this IPL (Indian Political League) like the original one is not over yet. And there can still be a twist in the Tale.

Sonia Gandhi & Dr Singh’s decision not to back Tharoor had one key element attached to it. Both didn’t want the current UPA to be linked to any form of corruption charges. Tharoor might be a bit unlucky also as probably his intention was not to make money himself but the route chosen by him to participate in the IPL frenzy has cost

him dearly. From the time reports surfaced on Tharoor’s participation in the bidding process, he was in trouble. Being a little too straightforward for Indian politics which led to him acknowledging that he was mentoring the Kochi side and never shy of roaming with his love interest in public has cost him dearly. Now a mentor can be interpreted in different ways. Similarly his proximity to Sunanda Pushkar who happens to be a stake holder in the Kochi consortium without investing a penny was something too crude to digest for Indian polity. That’s exactly what Modi & the BJP did. And with each passing day a new revelation of Tharoor’s role kept emerging.

But Congress’s larger game plan was not only to keep its track record clean but also to launch a counter attack on the BJP led opposition. Even before Pranab announced that IPL will be probed and the guilty will not be spared, the Income tax department was on the game

The reason why Tharoor lost the first round to Modi many would say is because the former was a minister; hence he was a public servant, while Modi heads a private entity and is not accountable to the public directly. But there are other reasons as well which is why Modi survived the initial attack atleast. The first advantage Modi had was that he might be close to the BJP, but he is not a BJP worker officially. So even if they attack Modi, the Congress cannot link him directly to the saffron party. Moreover Congress ally Sharad Pawar is openly backing Modi.

But with the I-T department determined to implicate Modi, this just might be the tip of the iceberg. If Modi is sacked by the BCCI or taken to task for the alleged financial mishaps within the IPL, he will not go out silently but will make the whole BCCI face the music. IPL is a subsidiary of the BCCI, so if Lalit Modi is indicted so will be the IPL and invariably the BCCI. And if that happens then we will see a Pandora’s Box being opened. And with the likes of Sharad Pawar, Arun Jaitley & Farooq Abdullah on the BCCI council, this could lead to a major political storm. Not only are politicians involved but even the big corporates are involved in the BCCI & the IPL

N.Srinivasan who is the vice-chairman of India Cements owns the Chennai Super Kings. And Mr Srinivasan also happens to be the secretary of the BCCI. K.Srikanth is the official brand ambassador of the same team and he also happens to be the chief national selector of the BCCI. So wasn’t there a conflict of interest right from the first round of bidding which happened in 2008? It’s now a direct battle between the government and the BCCI backed by politicians & strong corporates.

But in the end the biggest loser is not the political class, but the brand IPL itself. Though till now there are no signs of the audience rejecting the tournament because of the latest controversy, but IPL as a sporting brand which is becoming a global phenomenon has definitely taken a beating. A brand which has made India proud may become a tainted sporting property. And again the culprits remain the same as they have always been in the last six decades- politics, money & corruption.

BACHCHAN HAS TO DECIDE

Bollywood superstar Amitabh Bachchan is facing a huge dilemma. From the time his close friend Amar Singh has been expelled from the Samajwadi party (SP), both Bachchan & Singh have been looking for a new political patronage. Given the number of controversies the Bachchans have been involved in, it is imperative for them to get some concrete political shelter.

Bachchan’s parents shared a very close & cordial relationship with the Nehru-Gandhi family. Bachchan himself was a very good friend of Rajiv Gandhi. But things changed drastically after Rajiv Gandhi’s death. The two families started drifting away and reached a point where the bitterness with the two was out in the public. In the 90’s when Bachchan was going through financial crisis, the Gandhis didn’t do much to help them out. It was during this period that Amar Singh’s proximity to Bachchan grew and eventually also brought him closer to Amar Singh’s Samajawadi party. In the early part of this decade Amar

Singh, Amitabh Bachchan & industrialist Anil Ambani became to be known as the famous ‘A’ group. This was also the time when the Samajawadi party was not only growing in UP but also had a strong growing influence in Delhi. But for the last 4 years Samajwadi Party has been on the decline. And during that period Amar Singh’s open fight with Samajwadi’s top bosses also didn’t do much good for the Bachchans. And now with Amar Singh out of Samajwadi, things are looking dicey for the Bachchans & Singh.

Bachchan’s proximity to Bal Thackeray has been growing for years even during the time he was in SP. Though last year when Jaya Bachchan (Amitabh’s wife) had to face Raj Thackarey’s rage for insulting the so called sentiments of the Marathi people, Bal Thackeray did not back him publicly. Surprisingly just a couple of months back the Shiv Sena went on a rampage against Shahrukh Khan for criticizing the non-selection of Pakistani players in this edition of the IPL. Where as on the other hand no one including Bal Thackarey even uttered a word against Amitabh Bachchan even though he publicly criticized the non inclusion of the same Pakistani players in the IPL and he was also the brand ambassador of the peace initiative by the two leading English dailies of India & Pakistan.

But given Bal Thackeray’s declining power & influence in national politics & with no Samajwadi to back him anymore, Bachchan needs to look for new political friends. Last month to everyone’s surprise Bachchan landed up in Gujarat to screen his latest hit ‘Paa’ for none other then Narendra Modi. A new friendship was seen brewing between the two when Bachchan immediately agreed to become the brand ambassador for the state of Gujarat. This growing proximity between Bachchan & BJP’s posterboy has send ripples across political circles. But another stunner came this week when Amitabh Bachchan was invited by the Congress government in Maharashtra to inaugurate the 2nd phase of the famous Bandra-Worli sea link in Mumbai. While just a year back the 1st phase of the same sea link was inaugurated by Sonia Gandhi. This latest invitation is seen by many in political circles as an indication by both the Congress & Bachchan for a public patch up. And this would have never been possible with out the permission of Sonia Gandhi.

It would be interesting to see in the near future which party will Bachchan publicly show more inclination. With bollywood always landing in the middle of some political conspiracy or the other, Bachchan is trying to keep good terms with all the parties. But on bigger issues it would be imperative for Bachchan to take a clear stand. With Shiv Sena on the political downslide and Raj Thackeray waiting for an opportunity to attack Bachchan again, Bachchan will have to make sure that atleast one out of the Congress or BJP gives him political protection. The emperor of bollywood desperately needs allies for future security. This script could end up having a much more thrilling climax compared to any other superhit bollywood movie would have had.

CRICKET: THE TOOL FOR DIPLOMATIC WAR

The IPL auction which saw absolutely no bidding for Pakistani players has left the whole of Pakistan fuming & has lead to a diplomatic war between the two sides….Lalit Modi in his defense kept stating that ‘performance’ & ‘availability’ were the criteria based on which the franchises selected the players…

Mr Modi did not do his homework as he forgot that Pakistan are the T20 champions and out of the eleven Pakistani players put for auction most of the players were part of the winning team. And as far as availability is concerned…Pakistan has no tour lined up for March & April when the IPL is scheduled to take place…So this theory stands no ground. It could probably be a sort of a

pay-back time for the government to send a message to Modi to not get into a direct confrontation with the government as he did last year. The sad fact of the matter is that Modi is becoming bigger than the event…And this is a peril for IPL

The franchise haven’t come out in the open with a vivid explanation for the non-inclusion of Pakistani players in their teams but some of them have referred the unanimous decision to ‘security issues’ which they won’t be able to provide nor is the government ready to guarantee for any players. But home minister P.Chidambaram’s comment that the non-selection of Pakistani players was a ‘disservice’ to cricket has punched a big hole in the explanation given by the franchises.

The IPL fiasco has united the political fraternity, cricketers & the people of Pakistan. This move has given the government of Pakistan the much needed ammunition to attack the Indian government. The saddest aspect of the whole event is that the people across the border have perceived as political decision with the backing of the Indian people. Though the Indian media & the Indian cricket fraternity has condemned the whole event...

Lalit Modi handled this situation in a very abysmal manner. Ideally, the IPL along with all the franchises should have issued a statement to the Pakistan cricket board before the auction itself that they won’t be able to include the players in the auction as the franchises won’t be able to provide security for the players. Altleast by doing this the dignity of the players would have remained intact. No doubt that some clamor would have been raised by the Pakistan cricket board or even the government but atleast the players would not have felt humiliated.

Another loser is IPL the tournament itself. The fact that IPL projects itself is a fusion of cultures where there are no political boundaries, racial divide or religious conflicts have been contradicted by this very event. History is a testimony that cricket has played a pivotal role in bringing both the nations together. Whether it was the standing ovation for the Pakistan team after it beat India in Chennai in 1999 or the stupendous welcome for the Indian team when it visited Pakistan in 2004. IPL had the golden chance to recreate that magic but alas! They have dropped it… Even art & culture has been instrumental in bridging the divide. Bollywood movies and actors are a rage in Pakistan while Pakistani singers are admired by Indians…Art, culture and especially cricket have bolstered the warmth & affection between the citizens of both countries.

But if we start using them as tools for fighting a diplomatic war then the situation will deteriorate even more. And this is exactly what the terror groups in Pakistan & the rightist groups in India want. They want to create a situation where even people to people link breaks and creates more acrimony between the two sides.

The only silver lining is the stand taken by the Indian government which at least by condemning the handling of the whole issue has send the message that it is fighting a war against terrorists operating out of Pakistan not the people or cricketers of Pakistan…It’s high time that the likes of Modi look beyond commercial interest as that will enhance the reputation of Indian cricket & the sport itself….

IPL 3 might go on raking big bucks and once the TRP’s kick in the whole episode would be forgotten but no global cricket tournament is complete with out the representation of all the cricketing giants…The IPL sheen would be missing this time around thanks to the absence of Pakistani players…