What's in a name? Ask Team India : Draft of new Sports Bill states both cricket board and IPL should be under purview of RTI failing which BCCI may be barred from calling its team 'India'.

DNA: New Delhi: Tuesday, July 30, 2013.

Abhinav Bindra (R) with Viren Rasquinha
during a media interaction on Draft
National Sports Development Bill, 2013

The Indian cricket board, it appears, will have no option but to come under the purview of Right to Information Act (RTI) if it wants to continue to be called ‘Team India’, which represents the country at the international level.

Going by the draft of The National Sports Development Bill 2013, which clearly states that “only National Olympic Committee and National Sports Federations (NSF) that come under the ambit of RTI can use ‘India’ in the title”, the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) will have no other option but to fall in line as and when this bill would see the light of the day.

The revised draft was submitted by the committee headed by Justice (retd) Mukul Mudgal to the Ministry of Youth Affairs & Sports last week may well again invite the wrath of some Union ministers, like the one happened in 2011 with Ajay Maken, when it will be brought to the cabinet for approval.

“BCCI is no exception in this bill. It’s like any of the other 66 NSF’s included in the Bill,” sports secretary Pradeep K Deb told dna on Monday.

Chairman of the bill committee Justice Mudgal also said that “BCCI will have to come under the RTI once the Bill is passed by our Parliament”. Meanwhile, dna has learnt that the Indian Premier League (IPL), too, will automatically fall under the ambit of RTI since it’s one of the constituent of the cricket board.

The committee was consisted of eminent sportspersons like Olympic gold medallist shooter Abhinav Bindra and former India hockey skipper Viren Rasquinha apart from the sports administrators and legal experts. When asked what will happen in case BCCI refuses to adhere to the Bill’s provisions?

The answer was quick and straight… “If the bill is passed in Parliament then BCCI can be stopped from using ‘India’ as the team’s name or officially represent the country,” was Deb’s reply.

Even Bindra looked hopeful that this Bill will see the light of the day. “I’m hopeful that this sports bill will get the support of everyone. This is important to bring in the transparency and accountability among our sports federations, which can ultimately result in improving the level of sports in coming years,” said Bindra.

However, there are certain provisions also made in the Bill in order to appease the BCCI, like “one cannot raise questions regarding why a particular player/coach is selected over another, or the contents of a player’s contract, medical health and fitness etc”.