Kolkata, Oct 29 (IANS) The Indian cricket board Saturday rejected the draft sports regulation bill of the central government, saying it "tends to encroach upon fundamental rights of sports bodies".
In a statement after its working committee meeting here, the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) also alleged that certain provisions in the bill "seek to destroy the autonomy of the board and dilute the rights of its members".
"While the BCCI is all for good governance and transparency in sports bodies, certain aspects of the bill seek to destroy the autonomy of the board and dilute the rights of its members," the statement read.
"Therefore, the board is totally opposed to this bill."
The BCCI said it will communicate its objections to the ministry of youth affairs & sports shortly.
"It has to be borne in mind that 'Sports' is a state subject and the legislative competence of the central government is limited. The bill tends to encroach upon fundamental rights of sports bodies," the statement added.
2011/11/14 14:29:07 New Delhi, Nov 14 (IANS) Union Sports minister Ajay Maken Monday said he hoped to get the national sports bill passed by parliament during its winter session and pointed out that the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) should come under the Right to Informational (RTI) Act for their own benefit.
"When we talk about transparency and the RTI, it is about all the 66 sports disciplines including the BCCI. It is public money that they are dealing with and they should come out clean for their own benefit. Otherwise there will be a question mark on whatever good work they have done in the past," Maken told reporters at the National Stadium here while distributing cash awards among sportspersons.
Maken, however, said that the challenge for him is to lay the revised sports bill before the cabinet, which had earlier rejected it during the last session of parliament.
"I am trying to present the bill again in the cabinet and get it passed during the winter session of parliament," he said.
Asked about the controversial World Series of Hockey (WSH), Maken said: "Personally, I have nothing to do with the WSH, I am only concerned about the national hockey team."
Maken also said that there wouldn't be any dearth of funds for preparations for the 2012 London Olympics.
"We have a steering committee, headed by sports secretary, that looks after all the funds. In all the sports federations we have government observers, who look after all the resources. We have a huge amount set aside for the London Olympics and I can assure you all that there will be no dearth of funds," he said.
Maken also said that from next year the sports ministry will distribute cash prizes twice in a year to prevent backlog.
"Today we distributed around Rs.8 crore to athletes and coaches for their achievements since 2010. To avoid such delays we will be giving away cash awards twice every year. We will also make sure that coaches, who play a huge role during the formative years of an athlete, are also awarded," he said.
The nine meetings between the civic society members and the Congress party to finalize the rough sketch of the new Lokpal Bill ends with differences. But, the Union Cabinet has approved the new Lokpal Bill drafted by Congress party. The Lokpal draft will be presented to Parliament in the coming monsoon sessions for approval.
Anna Hazare and his team who differ with the Lokpal draft prepared by Congress party have already announced that, Hazare is going to sit for indefinite hunger strike from 16th of August at New Delhi.
The Lokpal Bill draft prepared by the Congress party has spared the Prime minister and Judiciary system. Both of they will not come under its ambit. However, it can prosecute the Prime Minister after he steps down from his chair. The Lokpal can take up the cases of corruption a maximum seven years old cases only. Hence, it can’t bring the culprits to book if the case is one day old than the 7 years period. CBI also will not be merged into this Lokpal structure as demanded by Anna Hazare team. Unless, the full text of the Lokpal draft is made public it is not possible to know whether the new Lokpal Bill is worth constituting or not.
2011/11/19 16:15:48 New Delhi, Nov 19 (IANS) Sports Minister Ajay Maken Saturday hinted that his ministry will have to probe former India player Vinod Kambli's charge that the controversial 1996 World Cup semifinal between India and Sri Lanka at Kolkata's Eden Gardens could have been fixed, if the cricket board does not do it on its own.
"If there is any truth to this (allegation), then a probe should be conducted. The nation and cricket fans have the right to know the truth. It was a world-cup semifinal and the whole country must have been watching," Maken told reporters here.
Maken said he was pained by Kambli's allegation and, if true, it is extremely unfortunate for the game.
"Not only as a minister but also as a sports lover, I felt sad to hear that because I saw the match after cancelling a lot of my appointments," said Maken.
"It should be investigated properly. I think we should go to the root of it so that we can know the truth.
"Cricket lovers have a right to know because the World Cup semifinal must have been seen by everyone and if match-fixing has happened then it is extremely unfortunate," he added.
Maken said if the BCCI doesn't initiate action, the sports ministry may conduct an inquiry.
"We will see. As you know, the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) has not come to the sports ministry for any recognition so far, but I would want, whatever agency is there, BCCI should order a probe into it. If the BCCI doesn't conduct a probe, we will look at it," he said.
"We can't take the charge lightly. The ministry will intervene if the BCCI does not take any action," he said.
Maken also called for a betting law in the country.
"Time has come to bring in a law on betting in sports."
"We will see if it (anti-corruption law) has to be enacted by the sports ministry or the home ministry. We will have it examined," he said.
Maken reiterated that all federations should come under the ambit of the RTI.
"I have always mentioned and believed that all federations should come under the RTI and the BCCI should also come under its ambit. Cricket is also a sport and looking at these incidents my belief has become stronger that these federations should definitely come under RTI," he said.
Kambli, expressing shock over then captain Mohammad Azharuddin's decision to field first in the semifinal, said something was "amiss". The semi-final was eventually awarded to Sri Lanka after fans' rowdy behaviour.
Azharuddin, who was leading the team, rubbished the charge and has been supported by teammates Nayan Mongia, Sanjay Manjrekar, Venkatpathy Raju and then coach Ajit Wadekar, who said the move to field first was a collective decision of the team.
Maken, cricket authorities differ on Kambli's charge
2011/11/19 16:19:58 New Delhi, Nov 19 (IANS) Sports Minister Ajay Maken and the cricket authorities were on different wavelengths on former cricketer Vinod Kambli's charge that the 1996 World Cup semi-final between India and Sri Lanka could have been fixed.
While Maken said that the allegation needs to be investigated properly, BCCI and International Cricket Council (ICC) president Sharad Pawar said the matter need not be given any importance.
Maken even hinted that his ministry will have to probe Kambli's charge, if the cricket board does not do it on its own.
"If there is any truth to this (allegation), then a probe should be conducted. The nation and cricket fans have the right to know the truth. It was a world-cup semifinal and the whole country must have been watching," Maken told reporters here.
"It should be investigated properly. I think we should go to the root of it so that we can know the truth."
Maken said if the BCCI doesn't initiate action, the sports ministry may conduct an inquiry.
"We will see. As you know, the BCCI has not come to the sports ministry for any recognition so far, but I would want, whatever agency is there, BCCI should order a probe into it. If the BCCI doesn't conduct a probe, we will look at it," he said.
"We can't take the charge lightly. The ministry will intervene if the BCCI does not take any action," he said.
ICC president Sharad Pawar dismissed Kambli's allegations as "irresponsible."
"I honestly feel that his allegations are irresponsible statements," Pawar said.
"If he was an honest and a committed cricketer he should have spoken about it then. But he kept quiet, so I hold him irresponsible," said Pawar.
"I would rather believe in what Sourav Ganguly, Sachin Tendulkar or Ajit Wadekar (manager of the 1996 World Cup team) say," he said.
"If he (Kambli) had given importance to cricket, he could have been like Sachin Tendulkar. But consistency was always a problem with him," said the former BCCI chief.
BCCI vice president Rajeev Shukla also said that there was no need to give importance to Kambli's statement.
"I don't think we need to attach any importance to someone who wakes up 15 years after the incident to make these allegations," Shukla said.
Kambli, expressing shock over then captain Mohammad Azharuddin's decision to field first in the semifinal, said something was "amiss". The semi-final was eventually awarded to Sri Lanka after rowdy behaviour by the fans.
Azharuddin, who was leading the team, rubbished the charge and has been supported by teammates Nayan Mongia, Sanjay Manjrekar, Venkatpathy Raju and then coach Ajit Wadekar, who said the move to field first was a collective decision of the team.
Maken also called for a betting law in the country.
"Time has come to bring in a law on betting in sports."
"We will see if it (anti-corruption law) has to be enacted by the sports ministry or the home ministry. We will have it examined," he said.
Maken reiterated that all federations should come under the ambit of the RTI.
"I have always mentioned and believed that all federations should come under the RTI and the BCCI should also come under its ambit. Cricket is also a sport and looking at these incidents my belief has become stronger that these federations should definitely come under RTI," he said.
Govt agrees to Anna Hazare's demands on LokpalBill
2011/4/8 9:51:46
Anna Hazare's crusade against corruption is believed to have won the battle on Friday with the government relenting to the demands made by the veteran social activist, TV reports said.
However, Hazare on Friday night announced that his fast has not ended and further added that he will take a final decision on Saturday and that the deadlock over the anti-corruption bill is likely to end after that.
Hazare's announcement came following his emissaries' (Arvind Kejriwal and Swami Agnivesh) meeting with Union HRD minister Kapil Sibal, law minister Veerappa Moily and minority affairs minister Salman Khurshid. The government is believed to have relented to Anna Hazare's demands.
According to reports, Pranab Mukherjee is likely to be the chairman and Shanti Bhushan to be the co-chairman of the proposed joint committee to draft an effective Lokpal Bill. The draft of the Lokpal Billwill reportedly be formally notified.
Anna Hazare had demanded the appointment of a chairman and a co-chairman for the proposed joint committee to draft the Lokpal Bill and rejected the government's offer of setting up of the committee by a letter of the law ministry.
He also said there should be no "tainted" ministers in the joint committee comprising civil society members and ministers.
The government had sent a draft on Friday afternoon, following which Hazare sent his draft. "We replied to it and spoke to the three ministers about it," Swami Agnivesh had said. Source: Times of India
The BCCI has rejected the suggestion made by some senior cricketers asking it to raise the reward money to the Indian cricket team from one crore to five crore.
The BCCI deliberated the issue and decided not to raise the reward amount. A representative of the BCCI said that one crore was not a small amount and it had rewarded the cricketers adequately.
2011/11/29 14:34:04 (IANS) Activist Anna Hazare Tuesday said he will sit on a day-long protest at Delhi's Jantar Mantar Dec 11 against the draft Lokpal bill prepared by the government which had "cheated" the people.
He also warned of a major agitation starting Dec 27 at Delhi's Ramlila ground if changes were not made to the proposed anti-graft law.
"I will sit on a day-long protest on Dec 11 at Jantar Mantar and I urge everybody to agitate and take to the roads peacefully for a day," Hazare told reporters here.
Expressing his displeasure over the bill that has kept the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) and the lower bureaucracy out of its ambit, Hazare said that if changes were not made by parliament, another major agitation will be organised.
"We will monitor the developments in parliament which is on till Dec 22. If they don't make the changes by then, I'll agitate again at Ramlila Maidan Dec 27 and will call upon everybody to join me," he said.
Hazare said that the draft of the bill prepared by the parliamentary standing committee had cheated the people.
"The government has betrayed the people of this country again. The CBI is not independent and is controlled by the government. It needs to be brought under the Lokpal's purview," he added.
The parliamentary standing committee on law and justice examining the Lokpal bill is expected to finalise its report by Thursday and submit its recommendations to parliament in the first week of December.
New Delhi, May 18 (IANS) With the Mumbai Cricket Association (MCA) slapping a five-year ban on actor Shah Rukh Khan from entering the Wankhede Stadium,the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) Friday said that a decision on this has to be taken by it.
"The decision has to be taken by BCCI. MCA can recommend but BCCI will take a final decision," BCCI vice president Rajiv Shukla, who heads the Indian Premier League, said.
The MCA Friday slapped a five-year ban on Shah Rukh Khan from entering the Wankhede Stadium over his alleged misbehaviour at the ground Wednesday night after an IPL match between Kolkata Knight Riders which he co-owns and Mumbai Indians.
2011/7/1 4:05:33 A draft of a comprehensive new law on the Rights of disabled persons was on Friday presented to Union Minister for Social Justice and Empowerment Mukul Wasnik.
The proposed new law ‘The Rights of Persons with Disabilities Bill, 2011’, drafted by a Committee appointed by the Ministry of Social Justice and Empowerment, to replacing the existing Persons with Disabilities (Equal Opportunities, Protection of Rights and Full Participation) Act, 1995, seeks to repeal the Persons with Disabilities Act of 1995 and to replace it with a comprehensive rights based law in accordance with the provisions of the United Nations Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (UNCRPD).
The Persons with Disabilities Act, 1995 was proposed to be replaced by a new legislation by the Ministry in the light of the experience gained in the implementation of the Act, developments that have taken place in the disability sector over the years, and also the commitments under the UNCRPD.
A Committee under the Chairpersonship of Dr Sudha Kaul, who is also the Vice Chairperson, Indian Institute for Cerebral Palsy, Kolkata, and consisting of experts and representatives of stakeholders including Central Ministries, State Governments, Civil Society Organisations and experts, including persons with disabilities was set up by the Ministry of Social Justice and Empowerment on April 30, 2010 to consider various suggestions and views and to draft a comprehensive law.(INN)
Cabinet defers food bill as discussions inconclusive
2011/12/13 16:48:24 New Delhi, Dec 13 (IANS) The cabinet Tuesday deferred a decision on the proposed food security bill as talks on the legislation remained inconclusive, with Agriculture Minister Sharad Pawar raising the issue of high subsidies involved in implementing the measure.
“Discussions remained inconclusive. We are trying our best to introduce the bill this session,” Minister of State for Food, Consumer Affairs and Public Distribution (Independent Charge) K.V. Thomas told IANS.
The bill is the pet project of the Sonia Gandhi-led National Advisory Council.
Sources said Pawar has written to the food ministry expressing concern that the subsidy, at present is around Rs.63,000 crore, may go up to Rs.1.2 lakh crore once the right to food is enacted.
The rising fertiliser prices and the minimum support price of the grains could further add to the food subsidy, said sources.
For instance, while the bill proposes to give wheat at Rs.2 per kg to poor families, it would cost the government around Rs.17 per kg.
Sources said the government will now try to bring the United Progressive Alliance partners on board.
The draft bill seeks to cover not less than 75 percent of the rural population and 50 percent of urban households, and proposes 7 kg of foodgrain per person, at Rs.3 per kg for rice, Rs.2 per kg for wheat and Rs.1 per kg for coarse grains, to the priority beneficiaries.
The general category will be provided at least 3 kg foodgrains per person per month.
The draft bill suggests investment in the agriculture sector to boost food production in the long run. It also stresses on revamping the public distribution system, which will deliver the grains to the beneficiaries.
Taking note of concerns expressed by the states, the food ministry has provided for cost sharing in all the schemes under the draft bill.
The states want the central government to fully or partially share the cost of implementing the proposed law.
Other objections of the states include authority to decide on the criteria to identify the beneficiaries.
While the Chhattisgarh government wants to do the job itself, Bihar prefers an independent body to identify the beneficiaries.
Officials said the draft bill proposes legal rights to women, children, special groups including destitute and homeless, emergency and disaster affected persons and persons living in starvation to take home ration/meal.
To implement the right to food, the government has proposed to set up a three-tier grievance redressal mechanism at district, state and national level for the implementation of the legislation.
2011/12/13 15:32:32 New Delhi, Dec 13 (IANS) Former India captain Sunil Gavaskar has blasted the cricket board after its refusal to pay him $1 million fee per season for media activities involving the Indian Premier League (IPL).
The decision was taken at the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) working committee meeting here on Monday.
"BCCI has made a u-turn on my contract. I am baffled after reading reports that BCCI has refused to pay me my dues and my faith in BCCI has been shaken," Gavaskar told a television channel.
Gavaskar said he got an assurance from BCCI president Sharad Pawar that his dues will be cleared.
"Sharad Pawar and Arun Jaitely both promised me on phone that my dues will be cleared. In fact, Sharad Pawar and Lalit Modi had promised me a Rs.4 crore IPL contract in 2007," he said.
Gavaskar also criticised BCCI on Anil Kumble's resigning from the chairmanship of the National Cricket Academy (NCA).
"When someone of his (Anil's) credibility speaks about a programme then one should always discuss it properly. You may not agree with him 100 per cent but one should look at what he says. He has played the game at the highest level and has also suffered from injuries.”
“So if he had a plan, it must have been for the benefit of players. The board could have told him that look this is expensive but we can try and make certain adjustments," he said.
2011/12/21 9:48:50 Telugu Desam Party president N Chandrababu Naidu on Wednesday rejected the draft Lok Pal Bill approved by the Union Cabinet.
Talking to reporters at his residence, Naidu said that the Congress-led UPA Government has cheated the Civil Society members including Anna Hazare on the Lok Pal Bill. He said the Bill in the format proposed by the Centre was not acceptable, as it would not serve any purpose.
Naidu demanded that the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) should be brought under the purview of the Lok Pal. He feared that the CBI would be misused by the party in power if it is excluded from the Lok Pal's purview. Further, he said the conditional inclusion of Prime Minister's in the Lok Pal too was not acceptable to the TDP.
The TDP chief alleged that the Congress party tried hard to stop the Lok Pal Bill. He asked the Congress party and Prime Minister Dr Manmohan Singh to think of the country and people, than trying to protect the interest of the ruling party. However, he said that the TDP was yet to decide on what it would do when the Bill comes up for voting in the Parliament.
Referring to the arrests of senior IAS officials Srilakshmi and VD Rajagopal in the Obulapuram Mining Corporation illegal mining case, Naidu said that during his tenure as the Chief Minister several IAS officials from the State were elevated to the higher posts. However, during the Congress regime, the officials are being sent to the prison primarily due to the corrupt activities of the ministers.
The TDP president also condemned the attack on Handlooms Minster Dr P Shankar Rao by some Congress activists at LB Nagar on Tuesday. However, he said that it was unfortunate that Home Minister P Sabitha Indira Reddy was being suspected for engineering the attack. He said a Home Minister facing the allegations of attack on another minister clearly indicates the sorry state of law and order situation in the State. He also alleged that the ruling party was supporting the mafia. (INN)
2011/4/18 17:59:03 Even before 24 hours of his statement that he made day before yesterday, Anna Hazare has changed his mind over extending the dead line for implementing the Jan Lok Pal Bill.
“If, the Government is sincere about introducing and implementing the Jan Lok Pal Bill, I have no objections to wait for few more weeks or months for the bill to take shape,” said Anna Hazare on Sunday.
But, as if some thing happened he has changed his statement overnight and stated that, the Bill should be implemented before the dead line 15th of August, otherwise he once again will go to people. He also stated that, those parties which may oppose the Bill in the parliament will be considered as favoring corruption. In that case, he hoped that people will teach them good lesson. He blamed political parties and politicians for creating confusion over the first draft meeting of the committee held on Saturday.
It seems, the corrupt politicians and their parties are trying to distract the Gandhian styled Anna Hazare with their crooked political ideas to make him wrong statements, so as he will loose the people’s support and their confidence. It is time for us to stand by him, who alone comes forward to fight on our behalf.
Lok Pal Drafting Panel civil society member seeks TDP support
2011/7/2 4:19:03 Civil Society Member of the joint drafting committee of the Lok Pal Bill Arvind Kejriwal on Saturday met Telugu Desam Party president N Chandrababu Naidu, seeking the support of the main opposition party in the state to bring the Prime Minister under the Bill’s ambit.
Speaking to media persons outside Mr Naidu’s resident later, Mr Kejriwal said that the TDP chief responded positively to his plea of mounting pressure on the Centre to bring the Prime Minister under the Jan Lok Pal Bill's purview.
The civil society representative also said that the Bill proposes to bring the Central Bureau of Investigations and the Central Vigilance Commission under its ambit.
“Such organisations (like the CBI and CVC) are functioning independently in other countries. Their being brought under the purview of the Jan Lok Pal does not mean that it (the Jan Lok Pal) would run parallel to the Judiciary and Executive,” Mr Kejriwal said.
Mr Kejriwal also revealed that Mr Naidu had pointed out some irregularities in the draft Bill and urged the drafting committee to ensure that these irregularities are removed.
The civil society representatives have been meeting political party leaders across the country to gather support so that the proposed Bill is passed in Parliament.
Talking to media persons later, TDP MP Nama Nageshwar Rao said that the party had already extended complete support to the campaign launched by social activist Anna Hazare over the Lok Pal Bill. We will continue our support to the Lok Pal Bill.”
Mr Nageshwar Rao further said that the TDP will attend the all-party meeting to discuss the Lok Pal Bill whenever it is held.(INN)
Acted in compliance of contractual obligations: Nimbus
2011/12/13 15:25:55 New Delhi, Dec 13 (IANS) Sports broadcaster Nimbus, whose contract with the Indian board was terminated Monday on grounds of defaulting payments, said Tuesday that it had "acted in compliance of its contractual obligations".
The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) terminated its contract, that ran till 2014, and also seized the bank guarantee amount of Rs.2,000 crore, after Nimbus defaulted on payments. Nimbus also failed to pay the BCCI 50 percent advance payment for both the England and the West Indies series.
"Given the confidentiality provisions of such contracts, Nimbus is unable to discuss details with the media, but can confirm that it has acted in compliance of its contractual obligations and variations agreed between the parties from time to time," Nimbus said in a statement.
"Nimbus is working towards achieving full resolution of any differences that may have arisen between the parties and is hopeful of a reasoned conclusion of these in the coming weeks," the statement added.
"Obviously, it has fully reserved all its rights and options, including invoking the arbitration process if need be. No further statement will be made by Nimbus in this regard till its discussions with BCCI are concluded in the coming weeks," it further said.
Nimbus first signed a four-year deal in 2005-06 and renewed it in 2009 for a whopping Rs.2,000 crore after being offered the first right of refusal. They had paid Rs.24 crore ahead of the working committee meeting here Monday morning but there was still an outstanding amount of Rs.88 crore.
2011/10/7 8:38:14 The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) has differed with the game’s governing body, the ICC.
In a release here today, the BCCI Secretary, Sanjay Jagdale has stated that the controversial DRS will not be used during the ODI and T20 International Series between India and England. The series gets underway at the Rajiv Gandhi International Stadium here on October 14 and will conclude on October 29.
However, the NKP Salve Challenger Trophy, to be hosted by the VCA from Sunday, will be played under the amended playing conditions that the ICC brought into effect for all international matches.
Meanwhile, Jagdale said that all senior-level domestic matches and tournaments organized by the BCCI will now be played under the amended playing conditions. (INN)
2011/12/6 3:03:34 (IANS) The parliamentary panel studying the Lokpal bill will meet Wednesday to adopt the final draft, following which the much-awaited report could be presented in parliament next week.
"The panel will meet briefly Dec 7 to adopt the final draft. The report could be tabled in parliament after 4-5 days once its translation, printing and binding is complete," Abhishek Manu Singhvi, who heads the Parliamentary Standing Committee on law and justice, told IANS.
The development comes in the wake of Anna Hazare's threats to hold a day-long protest Dec 11 to press demand for a strong Lokpal bill and an extended agitation Dec 27-Jan 5 if the legislation is not passed in the winter session, which ends Dec 22.
At its last meeting Dec 1, the panel was divided over decision to keep around 5.7 million Group C employees of the government out of the purview of the anti-graft ombudsman, leading to ten panel members submitting a note of dissent on the draft report.
Besides, Group C staff, the panel is also divided on issues like inclusion of the prime minister under the Lokpal, Lokayuktas in states, a citizens' charter, and the manner of appointing the Central Bureau of Investigation's director.
Singhvi had said the division would be reflected in the final report.
Sources said the dissent note has been submitted by members of the Bharatiya Janata Party, the Communist Party of India-Marxist, Revolutionary Socialist Party and the Samajwadi Party.
The Biju Janata Dal representative, who sided with the Congress members on the issue of keeping Group C employees out, has given a separate dissent note on the selection process of the CBI director.
Another member, Lok Janshakti Party chief Ram Vilas Paswan, has also given a dissent note, asking for reservation for Dalits, backward castes and minorities in the Lokpal panel.
2011/8/24 2:26:14 Telugu Desam Party president N Chandrababu Naidu on Wednesday reiterated that his party will introduce a No Confidence Motion against the Kiran Kumar Reddy Government.
Talking to reporters in Visakhapatnam on Wednesday, Chandrababu Naidu said that the present government was in minority and the TDP would introduce a No Trust move. He said the TDP was also ready to contest mid-terms polls, any time.
Regarding corruption, the TDP president demanded that the government constitute an autonomous committee to draft the Jan Lokpal Bill. He reiterated that the Prime Minister should be included in the ambit of Lok Pal Bill. He also stressed the importance of introducing political and financial reforms to contain corruption at all levels. (INN)
BCCI is playing out a revenge plot of its own as it has reportedly got three ICL players barred from cameos in Victory.
BCCI seems hell bent on making life miserable for the Indian Cricket League's New Zealand recruits and after forcing the Kiwi board to ban them from the national team, it has managed to get them barred from appearing in a Bollywood movie as well.
According to a report in the The Age, three New Zealand cricketers -- Nathan Astle, Daryl Tuffey and Craig McMillan -- who came back after participating in the inaugural edition of the ICL, were stopped from doing cameos in the cricket-based film Victory reportedly at the behest of BCCI.
The trio is furious and Astle lambasted the BCCI for interfering with their off-field life.
"To me it's a bit farcical, really; they're just being silly. It is out-and-out wrong," Astle was quoted as saying in the daily.
"The thing is it's starting to affect our earnings off the field. The big issue is that I don't think anyone, no matter how significant their standing in the game, should have a pull over our capacity to earn off the field," he added in disgust. Astle and his teammates were set to earn 13,000 dollars each for their small roles.
"They have had the hard word put on them by the BCCI to stop us from playing. I understand if they want to take that stance on the cricket field but this goes beyond that, and I think it's quite ridiculous, actually.
"I mean, this has nothing to do with playing - it's a movie about cricket. I was just supposed to rock up and bowl a few deliveries," he said.The film also stars several Australian cricketers, including pacers Brett Lee and Stuart Clark.
John Abraham fits the bill beautifully. He has been an avid sports player and has been playing football for his school and college says Vivek Agnihotri
Everyone who has been seeing the promos of Goal has been raving about John Abraham and going gaga over him.
And when we asked Vivek Agnihotri about his choice for the role he says, “When we were casting for the lead role for Goal there were two concerns first the actor should look athletic and be able to handle a football with ease.
Secondly he should be able to look like a second generation Asian born in England. John Abraham fits the bill beautifully.
He has been an avid sports player and has been playing football for his school and college. Also he is someone who can easily pass off as a second generation Asian born in England. Now that’s what we call John ka Goal.
(IANS) Activist Anna Hazare Tuesday said he will sit on a day-long protest at Delhi's Jantar Mantar Dec 11 against the draft Lokpal bill prepared by the government which had "cheated" the people.
Telugu Desam Party president N Chandrababu Naidu on Wednesday rejected the draft Lok Pal Bill approved by the Union Cabinet.
Even before 24 hours of his statement that he made day before yesterday, Anna Hazare has changed his mind over extending the dead line for implementing the Jan Lok Pal Bill.
