A report in a national daily stumped the cricket world. The report suggests that the Pawar family holds 16 per cent share in the consortium, City Corporation, that bid close to 1200 crores for Pune Franchise at the Auctions held in March. The Pune Franchise went into Sahara’s pocket which won the new baby in the IPL family with a bid of Rs. 1700 crores.
According to ExpressBuzz.com, Pawar, the chief of the Nationalist Congress Party (NCP), an ally of the ruling Congress party in Maharashtra and at the centre said that the managing director of City Corporation Anirudh Deshpande had made the bid for the Pune team in his ‘individual capacity’.
Supriya Sule, daughter of Sharad Pawar and a Member of Parliament, followed the footsteps of her father and very categorically declined the allegations against the Pawar family.
What Goes Against Pawar Family ?
According to an NDTV report, what’s flung itself at Pawar and his daughter is the fact that her father-in-law, BR Sule, is part of a consortium called Atlas Equifin, which owns a third of the company that owns the telecast rights to all IPL matches.
The report added that the deal that sanctioned the broadcast rights is being investigated by tax officials because it involved an 80 million dollar “facilitation fee”, effectively a commission, part of which allegedly went to Lalit Modi, the suspended IPL Chairman.
Supriya Sule said on April 20th ,“I say with full conviction that my husband or my family has nothing to do with these issues (the IPL bids)…We always stay miles away from it. Yes, we are avid cricket watchers, my husband, my kids, my family, all, and that’s where the buck stops.”
No mam, the Buck doesn’t stops here, the buck stops at the investigation into a Bid of atleast 170-200 cr by the Pawar family.
Sule, earlier, beyond the shadow of doubt declined Pawar family having any IPL stake. Now Sule says that she has 16 % share in the consortium. This is a complete contradiction. A 360 degree turn around. A case of pulling wool over the eyes of a nation crazy for the Cricket.
Supriya’s argument do not hold good, as Deshpande having technically made the bid in the name of City Corporation, of which Supriya holds 16 % share, legally implies that had the Consortium won the Bid the Pawar family would have had 16% share in the Pune Franchise.
The artihmatic of the Bid goes like this. Deshpande, legally City Corporation, made a bid of Rs. 1176 Crores. Since Sule has 16% share in the consortium, 16% of 1176 crore bid = Approx. 188 crores. Thus, if City Corp gets the deal, the 16% stake holders is a part of it too.
The document accessed by the media shows very clearly that the City Corporation, on the 31st of January this year, in its the board resolution, decided that Anirudh Deshpande was bidding on behalf of the company.
According to TimesNow.TV, what Anirudh Deshpande has made public instead is the document which showed a resolution dated March 17th that said that he would bid in his personal capacity and not on behalf of City Corporation.
This contradiction further strengthened by the BCCI top boss himself who said the Board only knew of City Corporation’s bid as a company and not Deshpande in his individual capacity.
BCCI= Board of Cultivating Commercialised Interests ?
First we thought the corruption ends at Lalit Modi, but now we have Pawar, Sule and beyond. Before we know it, we will have Chirayu Amin raising his hand and saying, “I’am also a bidder”, and that too only after Modi act of shame. After all this, a fanatic cricket fan is conned, left in lurch, he is brought to naught, he is, in Bishan singh Bedi’s words, ‘annoyed‘.
Quetions, Nation demands Answers For–
Why did Supriya Sule not confess on April 20th what she had now? Isn’t it a clear case of hiding (impropriety) & misleading the nation?
How can we believe the argument of Deshpande bidding in his personal capacity, when the bid was technically made in the company’s name?
Why didn’t Pawars and Deshpande mention the City Corp board resolution, authorizing Deshpande to bid in the company’s name?
Is the 17th of March resolution an afterthought? Is it a cover up? Was it a precautionary makeshift, taken to avert the danger from Pawar’s head, in case the nuts and bolts are exposed?
Why didn’t the BCCI or IPL Governing Council raise alarm bells after Jan 31st? Was the BCCI top brass morally blind or intellectually drained to ignore it?
When Tharoor can be asked to quit because of Rendezvous, why can’t Pawar be asked to quit because of Anirudh Deshpande?
Supriya Sule asked the media, “why blame me or my father?” we ask, why not?
IPLGATE 2 has opened up a can of worms that is fast becoming unwieldy. The nation was already dealing with IPLGATE 1, that it was bombarded with its Sequel. The trust on the system is diminishing, the love for the game on the verge of being taken a beat.
Cricket has been forced to take a back seat. In-numerous controversies are surrounding cricket and the board’s credibility is at stake. The need of the hour is to have a refreshed look at everything and to investigate well to clean the muck.
What do you think? Should Pawar be sacked? Should there be a revival of BCCI?