BCCI's anti-Ganguly orders

By ICF Staff
May 12 2006

BCCI issues gag orders on yet another player -- Virender Sehwag -- after he says something mildly positive about ex-captain Ganguly who has been treated unfairly by the unscrupulous Pawar/More/Chappell combine.

A few weeks back it was Yuvraj Singh, now it is Virender Sehwag. One is the vice-captain, the other is the stand-in vice-captain, and both are in line for captaincy after the retirement of 34-year old Rahul Dravid.

Anything positive said about ex-captain Sourav Ganguly, who has received a raw deal due to animosity from controversial coach Greg Chappell and the new BCCI setup with Pawar/Modi/More combine, has been met by gag orders.

Pawar and Modi, who have been going after ex-BCCI chief Jagmohan Dalmiya with a vengeance despite being admonished by the High Court, do not seem to have the interests of Indian cricket at heart. Their agenda seems to be two-fold: (a) make as much money as possible in as many ways as possible, (b) destroy the legacy of a fellow Indian who has taken cricket to a new level as a sport.

The small-mindedness of Pawar/Modi/More is disgusting to say the least. They should be content with the massive revenue they are taking in thanks to the players, rather than criticizing the players publicly or gagging them or giving them a schedule guaranteed to burn them out.

The ICPA (Indian Cricket Players Association) needs to step in and prevent the BCCI from exploiting the Indian players, but their attitude has been cowardly at best. Asked to comment on the burnout issue and the gag order, an ICPA representative said, "The ICPA has no comment to make on these subjects."

Meanwhile, ex-players have spoken up on Sehwag's behalf.

Former Test cricketer Chetan Chauhan said BCCI was "overdoing" it by restricting players from talking to the press while former India captain Dilip Vengsarkar also said he did not think there was anything wrong in expressing one's opinion.

"It is a democratic country, you cannot throttle players," Chauhan said. "Sehwag has not said anything against the Board. He did not say anything which is detrimental to the game or to the Board. He has just given his personal opinion, and he should have the right to do so. The Board can accept it or ignore it."

But democracy seems to be a concept that's alien to the new setup at the BCCI. Sharad Pawar, a full-time Cabinet Minister of India, is the BCCI President. It is unthinkable that one of the top government officials in the country has the time to run the cricket body, and vindictively tries to manipulate the justice system to spite his predecessor. This is the stuff of banana republics, not a democracy.

Ganguly, Dalmiya, and Wright took Indian cricket to new highs. With Pawar, Chappel and More, ugly politics has made a comeback.