Every sport in this country is equal, so it’s only logical for BCCI to come under NADA, says Kiren Rijiju
Sports Minister Kiren Rijiju said, on Monday, that bringing the BCCI under the ambit of NADA was the only logical course of action as he considered all sports to have equal standing. However, one major implication is the pressure on the BCCI to now fall under the government’s RTI Act.
Earlier this month, the country’s richest sporting body was forced to come under the ambit of the National Anti-Doping Agency (NADA), a landmark development for Rijiju few months after assuming his office.
“Definitely (one of the big positives)! BCCI is the governing body of cricket and cricket is also a sport. So, all the sports law and sports provisions prevalent in the country is applicable to it. So failing to implement the law cannot be taken forward in a logical way,” Rijiju told PTI in an exclusive interview.
“But I am very particular that every sport, every game and every player in this country is equal. It was a natural course of action and it’s good that it happened, otherwise it would sound a little vague that only one game is outside the ambit of the rules,” he added.
However, the implications of this move are huge for the BCCI, as government norms open up the possibility of the cricket board becoming a National Sports Federation (NSF). The BCCI is refusing to succumb to the tremendous pressure to fall under the government’s Right to Information (RTI) Act, claiming that it is not an NSF as it doesn’t take any grant from the government.
“Government’s money is people’s money. So that statement doesn’t matter. How is the money coming to BCCI? he questioned. BCCI’s argument itself is without any basis. The money belongs to the country. How does money come to a sport? From people only, people watch TV, people pay for tickets or through advertisements, it is people’s money,” Rijiju said.
“The money is available to the body from people. It is the people’s money whether from the government or directly collected from the government, the value remains the same. It is very important for every organisation to function in a transparent and accountable manner. It’s not a question of cricket or any federation,” he continued.
Meanwhile, the Union Minister is pushing for a National Sports Code, a guide to good governance in sports.
“The National Sports Code is very important law which will govern the sports administration in this country. We must have a system. If you want to have a robust sports culture in the country then you must have a robust system also. A robust sports code or rule or guideline has to be there. I think very soon we should be able to come out with a very clear cut sports code which would be an improved version of the earlier code,” Rijiju added.