Sources say that the charges being leveled against the former cricketers by the legislators is simply to avenge the 'insult' of being given only one ticket per head by the association.
Sources say that the charges being leveled against the former cricketers by the legislators is simply to avenge the 'insult' of being given only one ticket per head by the association. Former cricketers Anil Kumble and Javagal Srinath are facing political bouncers from state legislators in the form of alleged charges of black marketing of World Cup tickets during the India-England match on Sunday.
Kumble, and Srinath are president and secretary respectively of KSCA and took charge recently after winning the elections.
The game begins: While levelling allegations against KSCA officials,
the legislators said that Kumble and Srinath behave as if they are not
accountable to anybodySeveral legislators cutting across party lines, raised a hue and cry in the assembly yesterday, insinuating that Kumble and Srinath had allowed office bearers of the KSCA and close aides to get away with black marketing and other nefarious activities.
Allegations have also been levelled against Kumble's personal driver, stating that he was seen collecting cash for tickets sold in black.
Allegations galore
"Apart from making money by selling tickets in black, an office bearer close to Kumble demanded Rs 5,000 for a free pass," alleged Ne La Narendra Babu, a Congress MLA, who raised the issue in the house.
Babu also alleged that the new administrative committee headed by Kumble and Srinath was not handling things appropriately, and that there were several loopholes in the system.
"Kumble and Srinath behave as if they are not accountable to anybody and 75 per cent of the tickets was sent to associations out of the state. All these aspects should be probed and the culprits have to be brought to book," Babu said.
According to legislators, in all probability, the speaker will constitute a house committee to investigate the case after a detailed discussion scheduled for March 3.
Serious issue"I think it is a serious issue and it will be discussed by the house in detail tomorrow, following which I will take a decision," said K G Bopiah, speaker of the legislative assembly. He cited lack of transparency in distributing tickets as the reason for the chaos, which led to the police canning cricket fans at the ticket counters last week.
He added that Kumble and Srinath would probably face a house committee probe into the alleged charges.u00a0
According to sources, the main reason behind the all-out-attack against Kumble and Srinath is because the MLAs were not given sufficient tickets to take their families along to watch the match and this is their way of avenging the insult.
"KSCA issued one ticket per head and we wanted more as we had to take family along. We were ready to pay, but they insulted us. If this is the fate of legislators, what about common man?" lamented Dr Aswath Narayana, a BJP MLA.
'We knew it'While he admitted that tickets were being sold in black, Srinath dodged the bullet and blamed the police. "We knew this would happen and had requested the police to control it. If it happened despite our warnings, then it calls for a probe," he said.
When asked what his take on police personnel selling tickets was, Srinath said, "I don't want to comment. All I can say is that we have not done anything wrong and we are ready to face any kind of investigation."
Speaking to Kumble regarding the allegations against his driver, he said, "I don't know what to say. It is unfortunate that the legislators are levelling these allegations against me."
Political KumbleAnil Kumble is into active politics and is a member of the BJP. He is the vice president of the Wildlife Commission, which is a political appointment. However, a BJP MLA said, "The issue is above politics and I hope the speaker will not succumb to political pressure, but ensure that the house committee is constituted."
