Modi’s IPL ambition achieved
“I see IPL becoming bigger than the US National Football League and the English Premier League” – Lalit K. Modi
When Lalit Modi uttered these words in January after concluding a broadcasting deal with YouTube, little did he realise that he would bring this ambition to fruition within three months. Unfortunately for Modi, he appears to have emulated football’s Premier League in all the wrong ways.
At the same time as we are learning just how much money Portsmouth FC owe to various organisations large and small (£120 million and counting[1]), and we continue to hear about the shady ownership and conflicts of interest at the stone-cold heart of English football, a series of revelations and allegations about Modi’s exploits are being splashed across the media as Indian tax authorities start sifting through IPL finances.
Many of the allegations cover Modi’s use of his position for personal gain and to provide favourable opportunities for family members. The Premier League’s Richard Scudamore has never been accused of this, nor does he enjoy being seen in public using two Blackberries at the same time.
The former manager, chairman and chief executive of Portsmouth are all being prosecuted by English tax authorities on charges of cheating the public revenue, but these are the activites of a single club and it’s succession of shady, even phantom, owners and execs, not the entire league.
If reports are to be believed, Modi has a personal stake in a number of the franchises. Even if true, it will doubtless be hard to prove.
It seems more likely than it did a couple of days ago that Modi will stand his ground until such time as he is forced out by the BCCI. He has already been the catalyst for the resignation of a government minister and will not be prepared, it seems, to go queitly. As MoneyWeek noted in a profile as recently as March,
Lalit Modi has always possessed a Houdini-esque ability to get out of trouble. Not many people can talk their way out of a two-year prison sentence in South Carolina. Modi managed it.[2]
On the other hand, there are many powerful figures within Indian politics, business and cricket who would be more than happy to see Lalit take the fall if it means keeping themselves out of the picture. Plenty of other people have had their noses put out of joint by Modi’s overt commerciality (read: greed) and will also be happy to see his downfall.
Michael Henderson, writing in the Daily Telegraph last year, likened Modi to
a modern Charlemagne, with a little touch of Frederick the Great, the Prussian king AJP Taylor called “a barbarian of genius“[3]
Those who assume that this was a compliment might be missing the point. Both ripped Europe apart and weren’t too fussy about ancient traditions or who they trampled in the process. Whether future generations will refer to “Lalit der Große” remains to be seen.
There is already a hint of self-interested glee about the English media’s reporting of the story, but if the tax authorities uncover serious evidence of financial wrong-doing, the ramifications could potentially affect cricket globally. Consider that estimates suggest that India generates 80% of all global cricket income and it’s not hard to see how, even if a sizeable sum of that money is spent on ensuring that Andrew Flintoff’s knee is well rested.
And we thought the Stanford affair was embarrassing…
Footnotes
[1] – Source :: Guardian
[2] – Source :: Money Week
[3] – Source :: Daily Telegraph
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