Published: Aug 12, 2015, 04:32 PM (IST)
Edited: Aug 12, 2015, 04:32 PM (IST)
Shivlal Yadav, who was the interim-President of Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) for some time, accused many state board officials using their power to lure youngsters to their private cricket academies. In an interview to Mumbai Mirror, Yadav was quoted as saying, “They run private academies and the parents prefer to send their children only to their academies. It is a serious conflict of interests. Either you run the academy or run the association. You can’t have both.”
Referring to the Hyderabad Cricket Association (HCA) President, Arshad Ayub, and secretary John Manoj, Yadav said, “I have brought this to the notice of the panel. They have noted down the points. Let’s see what they come out with. The HCA academy was shut in the summer and these academies flourished.”
Apparently, Yadav has lodged a complaint before the Lodha panel. Complaints have been lodged before BCCI too.
However, Ayub said that if anyone is able to prove that he has used his powers in any negative way, then he will resign. “If anyone proves that I have favoured the students of my academy, I will resign. I’ve been running this for 18 years and Manoj’s academy is 25 years old. Why Yadav did not raise the issue before.”
Earlier, BCCI secretary Anurag Thakur had asked his colleagues in the various associations of the board to sign a ‘no conflict of interest’ declaration, days after the board had asked the players to sign an undertaking on the same lines. This comes after Justice Lodha Committee’s verdict of Gurunath Meiyappan and Raj Kundra. The committee has prepared 82-point questionnaire for officials of the board, Indian Premier League (IPL) and other state associations. According to reports, the questionnaire includes eight sections on ‘conflict of interest’. According to a PTI report, a source close to BCCI reportedly said, “Why just them? Why not Roger Binny, who sits on the selection committee that picks his son?”
A source close to RM Lodha Committee was quoted as saying by DNA “It’s obvious. Thakur’s is only a preempt bid. He is doing all this because the Justice RM Lodha Committee has sought answers. He is aware what the Supreme Court will ask the BCCI after receiving the Lodha panel’s report. He just wants to make sure that the BCCI is in the right. If and when he is posed a question on conflict or registration of player agents, he will tell the judges that the BCCI already has a system in place. That will be a very convenient route to take because in all these years, the BCCI never had time time to address all these issues.”
The weighty section (VII) asks three pertinent questions:
1. When a player/team official of an IPL team is the employee of the franchisee/owner of another team, does the BCCI perceive a conflict of interest? What steps are taken prevent such situations?
2. What steps have been taken by BCCI/IPL and the constituents to ensure that there is no conflict of interest between those who govern each of these entities and those are involved in their professional management? What sanctions have been laid down for suppressing information regarding the above?
3. Have steps have been taken to ensure there are no conflict of interest issues and that board/IPL representatives do not have relatives/associates selected for garnering these contracts?
Section VI pertains to to ‘player welfare and dispute resolution’. An important question in this bracket is: What norms are in place for regulation/licensing of player agents and representatives in India? If a licensing mechanism exists, what qualifications must a person have to become a player agent and what training must he/she undergo?
