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I was very proud of this Indian product called the IPL till very recently. But with the IPLGate saga unfolding over the last two weeks, I realized that this is actually a national shame and the tournament should be suspended till the time there is some transparency in the whole system be it on the details of stakeholders, the bidding procedure and how the IPL is contributing back to the game and so on.
As much as I love cricket and the concept of the IPL, I must say that national interest is more important than what seems to have now become a silly passion. There is already sufficient proof of huge amounts of tax evasion through this event and now we hear that the IPL actually is dictating our lives since the national carrier has diverted some of its flights putting genuine travellers in jeopardy to accommodate the VVVIPs of our country, the spoilt brats of today's age - the cricketers.
Till now the argument was - Oh it's great for cricket and our domestic cricketers.. look at the opportunities available to them and also the employment opportunities created for many others by the IPL.
But the costs seem to outweighing the benefits at this point. Consider this -
1. Money laundering by corporates/politicians.
2. There are power cuts in a number of metros during this part of the year but there is enough power supply for these guys to stage those day/night matches.
3. Tax-free IPL parties for these buggers which players are actually obliged to attend. No time for players to sleep - fitness goes for a six. Longevity of a player's career directly affected.
4. And all of this when we don't even know how much the IPL has reinvested into the game/infrastructure for the game.
5. The virus of betting and fixing could be at play once again.
Trusting our political class and the BCCI many more scams are likely to crop up in the future.
So no more IPL until these guys come clean on everything.
No more IPLs till the slate is clean
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9 comments:
Hain? Why must the cricket lover pay for the administrator's indiscretions?!
stupid post...we need IPL..My sick and old dad's only means of enjoyment for the last two months. Stupid post I say. We need more such tournaments for the public's enjoyment.
This IPL is anyways coming to an end... Once its over, there should be a complete overhaul in its structure...
Just banning or suspending the tournament will do no good as it is very popular amongst the Indian fanbase... besides, it does have its own merits as well...
@ Shridhar
The tournament no doubt has merits but the demerits at this stage (as listed in my post - money laundering, fixing bidding, tax evasion, misuse of government/public resources, nepotism, betting and match fixing, corruption by and kickbacks for BCCI/IPL officials) far outnumber the merits.
@ John
This is the price we have to pay if we have such corrupt administrators. Enjoyment for cricket lovers not more important than much larger and serious issues of tax evasion, money laundering, impropreity by government officials etc. I'm afraid we make cricket seem as if it is more important than anything else in the world. Just a sport at the end of the day and not bigger than national interest or the issues listed above that have not been addressed for 3 years.
The probe must go on if we need to cleanse this sport and in that case the next IPL season must not be allowed to be held. I don't think you've heard the latest news - 3 teams suspected of match fixing matches in IPL 2 as per ICC Anti-Corruption Unit and IT department. 27 players under the scanner for match fixing. Can an IPL be held under these circumstances? Now would you say that why should the CRICKET LOVER pay for the indiscretions of his favourite cricketers?
@K,
money laundering, fixing bidding, tax evasion, misuse of government/public resources, nepotism, betting and match fixing, corruption by and kickbacks for BCCI/IPL officials - has anything been proven?
It will be a sad world if guilty unless proven innocent is the de facto standard to judge the world.
Cheers,
Hello, when the Harshad Mehta scam exploded, did we suspend trading in the stock market? When the Bofors scam hit the roof, did India place a moratorium on arms purchases? When we first heard of Telgi, did the government suspend the use of stamp paper?! When the match-fixing scandal played the waves, was international cricket suspended till further notice? When we heard about corruption in the judiciary, the government certainly did not suspend the delivery of justice till the system was cleaned up.
What peculiar features characterize the IPL that a suspension of season 3 is warranted?
peculiar feature.. are you kidding me.. so here you go.. the peculiar feature in case u've still not figured it out is that we can live without the IPL but not without the Judiciary, trading in the stock market, stamp papers or arms purchases..
peculiar feature.. are you kidding me.. so here you go.. the peculiar feature in case u've still not figured it out is that we can live without the IPL but not without the Judiciary, trading in the stock market, stamp papers or arms purchases..
peculiar feature.. are you kidding me.. so here you go.. the peculiar feature in case u've still not figured it out is that we can live without the IPL but not without the Judiciary, trading in the stock market, stamp papers or arms purchases..
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