India, as we all know, has a diverse population who are crazy fans of sports. The Ministry of the Youth Affairs and Sports which is being led by a Cabinet Minister, as well as the National Sports Federations which looks after the funding and the working of the administration for the betterment of the sports in India, has been established so that the people can come and watch the sport they love. For the efficient and proper functioning of the sporting activities, they have made various laws and there are certain authorities which govern the same which are as:

Sports Authority of India (SAI), Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI), Hockey India (HI), Sports Law and welfare association of India, National Sports Policy, Indian Olympic Association (IOA) and many others. Since sports law is a pure law and not a theoretical law and it helps the Sporting activities to interact with the various laws of the land in general.

Cricket, as we all know, is regarded as the Gentleman’s game. It one of the most popular games in our country today and for the proper functioning and delight of the game, the BCCI Constitution came into force due to various incidents of disrespecting the game in the past and to make the game protected from all kinds of misconduct. The BCCI Constitution looks after the various laws pertaining to the game and players so that the game is played with proper intent on the field as well as off the field. As the game has seen various scandals and spot-fixing incidents in the past involving various cricket superstars it was a need of the hour to establish certain laws to govern the game. Once again this has come into picture when recently on a talk show two of the emerging superstars from the Indian Cricket Team namely KL Rahul and Hardik Pandya were seen making various sexists and bold comments which were inappropriate to be used when it comes down to the national television.

WHAT EXACTLY HAPPENED WHICH LEAD TO THE SUSPENSION OF THE TWO CRICKETERS?

The Duo Hardik and KL are known for their all-rounder and batting skills but after the 6th of January there are now known for their sexist and controversial comments and that they have made on the talk show. Due to their various inappropriate comments on the questions asked by the host is a matter that will be dealt under the Board of Control for Cricket in India’s Constitution and it will also have legal implications on the two under the Sports law. The BCCI as per the legal way, first issued a show cause notice to the two cricketers to justify their actions within 7 days and  to give them appropriate reasons as to why they should not be proceeded against for misconduct and indiscipline under Rule 41 of the BCCI’s Constitution and banned them for 2 matches but when the reason given by the two was not found justifiable, the committee on behalf of the BCCI has suspended both the cricketers until further notice.

Rule 41(6) under which the two cricketers have been convicted says:

Pending injury and proceeding into Complaints or charges of misconduct or any act of indiscipline or violation of any rules and regulations, the concerned member, administrator, player, match official, team official or any other player associated with the BCCI (along with their respective benefits and privileges may be suspended by the Apex Council until final adjudication. However, the said adjudication ought to be completed within Six Months, failing which the suspension shall cease.

The Committee of Administrators (COA) Member Diana Edulji is leading the case while on the other hand, BCCI has now been forced to seek legal advice so as to decide what will be the right decision in the matter. The matter falls under the Jurisdiction of the BCCI’s Constitution and under Clause 17&18 of the Constitution either the Apex Council can be called or an ombudsman to intervene in these kinds of matters. The matter has been such that it spread like wildfire in a Jungle and people started criticizing about the cricketers. The remarks that they made were seen as cringeworthy and disgusting. Both of them have under Rule41(6)  of the BCCI Constitution have been suspended from participating in any manner in any match under any circumstance which is related to the BCCI, ICC or any of the State Association until the final Adjudication of the matter.

CONCLUSION:

Now, as per the laws of the BCCI the matter will be adjudicated through an Ombudsman but since currently, the BCCI does not have one, it will appoint one as per the guidelines mentioned under the rule 40(1) according to which an ombudsman can only be a retired judge of the Supreme Court or a retired Chief justice of a high court. Thus, now the matter waits for further notice as to what will be the repercussions of the actions of the two cricketers and it will be interesting to see that how can a cup of coffee land you into trouble!