The Union Ministry of Sports and Youth Affairs on Wednesday said that Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) President N Srinivasan should resign on moral grounds, pending the outcome of the inquiry into the role of his son-in-law Gurunath Meiyappan and two Indian Premier League (IPL) teams in the alleged spot-fixing and betting scam.
In a statement, the ministry said that it has observed with considerable disquiet, reports about match and spot fixing in cricket.
"BCCI is inquiring into allegations of match and spot fixing. As there is a conflict of interest in this inquiry, therefore BCCI President should tender his resignation on moral grounds, pending the outcome of the inquiry," a statement from the Ministry said.
The Ministry also said that it is in favour of a law to curb malpractices in all sports.
"It will send its comments on the bill drafted by the Law Ministry, and is looking forward to working with the Law Ministry and other stakeholders for the development of a comprehensive law against match and spot fixing," the statement said.
The sports ministry also dismissed reports suggesting that it has favoured legalising betting in the wake of the spot fixing controversy.
"The ministry of sports has also observed that a section of the media has reported that it is in favour of a law regularising betting in the sporting events in the country. The ministry clarifies that betting is a state subject and cannot be part of a central law. The ministry has made no recommendations to regularise betting to the law ministry or to any other organisation," the statement added.
The clamour for the ouster of Srinivasan as the BCCI President has been growing for the last few days. Srinivasan is under sharp criticism after his son-in-law Gurunath Meiyappan was arrested on charges of betting in the IPL.
