Better late than never. After having sat on the files for so long, the government has finally ordered investigations into the finances of the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) and the Indian Premier League (IPL). The IPL chief, Lalit Modi, may also have his wings clipped soon — certainly the income tax investigations that are currently on will mean it will be a while before Mr Modi regains his trademark swagger. To stop here, however, would be unfortunate. The Shashi Tharoor affair shows that the rot in Indian cricket runs a lot deeper. News reports suggest that other politicians may also be involved in the emerging IPL scam. At the meeting where Mr Modi is supposed to have offered $50 million to the Kochi franchisees to back off, the daughter of a Cabinet minister was reportedly present. The meeting was followed by one at the Mumbai residence of the minister. No cleaning up of the IPL can be complete unless it addresses this political link. It is true, as many in the BCCI point out, that there is no rule that prevents them from holding a share in various IPL franchises, indeed that is why the BCCI secretary is also the owner of the Chennai Super Kings franchise. The reason why the link matters, and that is why it is important to know if Mr Modi or others hold benami shares in various franchises, is the favours that can be extended to the teams. If the Mumbai minister, for instance, is able to ensure the state government waives off entertainment taxes on IPL matches, this will benefit the teams whose home grounds are in Mumbai. Ditto for broadcast and other rights signed by the BCCI-IPL — were these given away by Mr Modi to a chosen few or were there genuine bids? The fact that so many of his relatives are involved, does suggest that all is not well.
It is true that, currently, the investigation seems to be centring around Mr Modi, and so it should given that he was issuing orders for most things. But it is surely surprising that the entire BCCI-IPL should have just given in to the whims of one man. Surely, this would point to others within the set-up being party to Mr Modi’s decisions. The illegal betting that is being talked of is something that is difficult to prove at the best of times, but there are signs that it could become much bigger if not checked right now. Ravindra Jadeja was banned from the IPL since he was negotiating with another franchise while his contract didn’t allow this, but what is to prevent players from falling ill on the eve of important matches or simply performing poorly? Another top player, it is well-known, asked his franchise owner if he could be given a relieving letter around the same time his performance started looking lacklustre. This may be a coincidence, but it is clear that unless strong measures are taken to clean up the BCCI-IPL, one of India’s best new global brands may well become a thing of the past.
