NEW DELHI: Two inter-related actions by the Sports Ministry are the clearest indicators yet that the rules of engagement between the government and the Board of Control for Cricket are a-changing (hat tip to Bob Dylan), and how!
First is the fact that the Sports Ministry, in a strongly worded letter, has heavily criticised the BCCI’s anti-doping processes and protocol. According to a report in the Indian Express, in a letter to BCCI CEO Rahul Johri, the Sports Ministry and it has said the BCCI’s anti-doping programme lacks robustness.
It also pointed at a conflict of interest since the BCCI tests AND ALSO hands out the quantum of punishment to the players. The Sports Ministry quoted article 5.2 of the WADA (World Anti-Doping Agency) Code which said sampling of athletes can be done only by an anti-doping organisation with testing authority. Since the BCCI has not signed up with NADA (National Anti-Doping Agency) for several years, the Sports Ministry has noted that the BCCI does not have the rights to conduct dope tests.
The letter pointed out the lack of robustness in the BCCI anti-doping programme. “In 2018, 215 samples were sent by BCCI to National Dope Testing Laboratory, India, for testing. Of these, 5 tested positive. There is no information as to how these athletes who tested positive have been dealt with,” the letter stated.
The ministry has raised questions about BCCI’s overarching involvement in dope cases. As per WADA rules, which are also adopted by NADA, an independent panel which has no prior involvement with the parties involved must be formed. In the BCCI’s case, this was not done in accordance and it raised the question of natural justice. “BCCI mechanism for adjudication in the event of the positive dope result is not in accordance with the principles of natural justice. BCCI as an interested party and also the appointing authority for the appointment of officers, tribunal members or appellate authority for adjudication,” the letter reads.
The Sports Ministry, according to the Indian Express report, had told Johri in a meeting last month that BCCI will have to comply with NADA rules and there will be no special arrangement. Currently, the BCCI’s testing programme is managed by Sweden-based International Doping Tests and Management.
In the meeting, the Sports Ministry has rejected BCCI’s claim that it does not fall under the ambit of NADA, the daily reports. The ministry cited a NADA rule which said, “All athletes and athlete support personnel who participate in any capacity in any activity organised, held, convened or authorised by the organiser of event or league that is not affiliated with National Federation are subject to testing by NADA.”
The BCCI’s contention in the matter is that since the Indian cricket board is not a government-funded national federation, it is not subject to NADA’s jurisdiction.
The BCCI is still not National Anti Doping Agency (NADA)-compliant and WADA had expressed its concerns to the International Cricket Council on the issue. It comes as no surprise that the BCCI (taking on board feedback from India’s cricket superstars) leveraged its economic muscle to ignore the ICC’s attempts to get it to toe the WADA.
Meanwhile, in what appears to be a cauuse and effect action by the government, South Africa’s A and women team’s upcoming tours to India in late August and September respectively have hit a roadblock as the BCCI is yet to get the mandatory clearance letter from the Sports Ministry required for visiting sides, PTI reports.
While the BCCI claims that it had made the application in March and was STILL waiting for the clearance letter, a Sports Ministry official told the newswire it is yet to get it.
“The application for the clearance was moved to the Sports Ministry back in March. There has never been such a delay on their part. The A series and women’s series start late August and early September,” a BCCI official privy to the developments told PTI on conditions of anonymity.
“The clearance letter from the ministry is sent to the Indian embassy in South Africa and it helps in the visa process. This delay is turning out to be a logistical nightmare. We don’t know what’s the reason for this delay,” the official added.
However, when contacted, a ministry official told the newswire they are “unaware of any communication from the BCCI”.
“Rather than going to the media, the BCCI officials should have come to the ministry if they had an issue,” a Sports Ministry official told PTI.
“One thing should be clear. The BCCI has to approach the ministry for any pending issue and it’s never the other way round,” the official stated.
The reason for the ministry’s “go slow”? “This delay for a routine clearance could well mean that the ministry wants to go all out to bring BCCI under its umbrella as a NSF. Otherwise, a four-month delay is unheard of even if we took into consideration that there were general elections,” said the BCCI official.
When PTI posed the same question to the ministry official, his reply: “All NSFs are under one government anti-doping agency and that is NADA. BCCI cannot sign a separate Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with the NADA without being fully compliant. In fact, when BCCI CEO Rahul Johri had come for a meeting earlier, the ministry brass had clearly told him so.”
