India Will be Left with Few Genuine Sportspersons if Mafia is Not Kept Off the Field
Sports and politics aren’t made for each other. But in India they
make a perfect couple, united by moolah rather than mission. Last week,
the Supreme Court used its most trusted and judicious pair of scissors
to separate the two. After going through voluminous reports and
arguments, the court made it clear that any syndicate of mutual
interests and questionable conduct of players and administrators would
not be allowed anymore. Though the observations concerned the ongoing
shenanigans in the BCCI, they reflected the malaise of crony corruption,
which has inflicted all of India’s sports bodies. For the past few
months, many sports institutions and players have brought not only
disrepute to the country but also exposed their preference for money
over sport.
It’s not a coincidence that even after the apex
court’s comments, not a single leader or party has condemned the
malignancy corroding Indian sports. Of the 150 sports bodies in the
country, there is not even one in which a politician or civil servant
doesn’t hold an exalted position. Despite determined attempts by some
sports-loving ministers, the government hasn’t been able to fix either a
stipulated tenure or an age limit for office bearers to rule a sports
body. Today, sports is the only viable and stable all-party coalition
led by the Congress and BJP. Even regional parties like the Sharad
Pawar-led NCP and Farooq Abdullah’s NC are part of this unholy alliance.
Its caliphs travel in style and stay in luxury hotels, while players
(except national cricketers) are made to travel cattle class or by train
and spend the night in seedy hotels. Some of India’s brilliant
sportspersons are humiliated by other countries, but no political leader
bothers to support their cause. For example, it was left to cricket
icon Sachin Tendulkar to take up the cudgels on behalf of boxer Sarita
Devi who unjustly faces lifetime expulsion by the International Boxing
Association. In an earlier incident, the Badminton Association of India
had imposed a ban on rising badminton star Jwala Gutta because she spoke
up for her team against foreign players.
Meanwhile, the cash-rich
BCCI has been at war with cricketers over the issue of ignoring
players’ interests. As far back as in 1989, Kapil Dev, Dilip Vengsarkar,
Ravi Shastri, Arun Lal, Kiran More and Mohammad Azharuddin had agitated
against the mighty bully for getting better contracts for players. But
BCCI was able to neutralise them and similar others with pay hikes and
monetary awards, which they deserved in the first place. This Cabal of
Cricket is one of the dirtiest sports bodies in India, full of infamous
and tainted operators deciding the fate of genuine players. Those who
oppose its dictatorial princes are shown the door or punished severely.
Because of the nexus between cricket administrators, match fixers and
money lords, the image of some of the most successful players has been
tarnished because they compromised with the lords of the game who refuse
to vacate their glided thrones even after the expiry of their terms.
The cricket mafia is the Badshah of all of India’s sports kingdoms.
Controlling the game, whether it is a comparatively low-level sport like
kabaddi or high-octane cricket, these paladins have ensured that a
country of over 1.25 billion can’t produce even half a dozen Olympic
gold medallists.
Collectively or individually, the conspiracy of
the corrupt has thwarted all attempts to reform India’s sports
governance. In the past two decades, sports ministers such as Uma Bharti
and Ajay Maken attempted to make sports bodies transparent and
accountable. Maken even drafted a bill, which sought to bring all such
organisations under the RTI Act. He took it to the Cabinet twice. He got
clearance from the PM and Congress High Command, but later both buckled
under pressure from some Union ministers and Opposition leaders to drop
the bill. It is not surprising that performing sports ministers have
always been neutralised in every Cabinet reshuffle. Any minister who
dared to challenge sports mafia by trying to bring it under RTI lost his
or her portfolio. While all parties speak up on all sorts of policy
makeovers, including economic reforms for rich corporates, they are
conspicuous by their silence over changing the face of sports for the
better. Narendra Modi, the country’s most powerful, effective, credible
and popular PM, has spoken about his resolve to rid India of all dirt
but has maintained silence on cleansing its filthiest sector—sports.
Perhaps he is waiting for the iron to get hot.
The growing
commercialisation of Indian sports has reached alarming proportions.
Ever since IPL became cricket’s golden goose, it is not only big
businessmen and Bollywood stars but also India’s rich and famous players
who are bidding for teams in cricket, football, hockey and even
kabaddi. Never have they bothered to improve sports facilities, give
donations for creating better playgrounds or grant monetary benefits to
encourage future champions. Instead they are investing millions to
become part of the elite group of sports club owners. From sportsmen
like Tendulkar and Virat Kohli, actors like Preity Zinta, Shah Rukh Khan
and John Abraham, and corporate players like India Cements, Vijay
Mallya and Anand Mahindra, all own sports teams. According to insiders,
senior ministers and leaders have been mounting pressure on various
corporations to own teams and make huge payoffs to their organisations.
Hence, companies are willing to oblige political masters by spending big
bucks on inviting international players to play for their clubs, but
are unwilling to adopt any school or college team, which could supply
national-level players of the future. Unfortunately, sports is fast
becoming a lucrative business for stars in business, glamour and even
sports itself. Unless this trend is not reversed, the nation will
certainly have some rich and famous players on its It-list, but few
genuine blood and sweat sportspersons who can make India proud in the
international arena.
Prabhuchawla@newindianexpress.com; Follow me on Twitter @PrabhuChawla
