Clean DDCA up, but let the #INDvsSA Test take place

The capital’s historic Ferozeshah Kotla is in the news again for the wrong reasons and the fear this time around is that next month’s fourth Test between India and South Africa may be shifted out of Delhi.

For decades, we have heard stories about how unprofessionally cricket is run in the capital. If old-timers referred to the DDCA (Delhi and District Cricket Association) as the “Delhi Drinking and Cards Association”, it was not far from reality.

The DDCA clubhouse has been the hub of activities other than cricket and the way of promoting the game has invariably been controversial. Stories about selection based on favouritism and bias from the junior to senior levels have been written year after year. Yet, nothing has changed and the DDCA continues to function in the same way.

The latest problem relating to the Kotla is how the Delhi state government under the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) is keen to clean up the mess at the capital’s cricket headquarters after former cricketers launched a campaign.

Everyone knows each time a big match takes place at this venue, there is last-minute scrambling for clearances from various civic agencies relating to fire, security, safety and other important aspects.

Invariably, matches have taken place — be it an one day international (ODI) or Indian Premier League (IPL) — as the DDCA has managed to pull strings, or possibly even grease palms, to “make it happen”.

This time around, the main issue is the non-payment of entertainment tax due to the Delhi government. Apparently, the DDCA has to pay the state government Rs 24 crore and it does not have the money.

The point is the DDCA is not a body that came into existence just a few years ago. If it is broke, the reasons for it are gross mismanagement, money being siphoned off by its officials for investment in private businesses, and lack of accountability.

While we all know the Indian cricket board (BCCI) gives each state association huge sums of money annually, the DDCA has been unable to finalise its annual accounts. As Mail Today has reported in the past, the news of Delhi’s Ranji cricketers not being paid their match fee is not new.

And now that the Delhi government is asking for Rs 24 crore, the DDCA is left with no option but to finalise its audited accounts, and hope the BCCI bails it out.

Former cricketers like Bishan Singh Bedi, Akash Lal and Kirti Azad have been vocal in their criticism of the DDCA and how the Kotla is unfit to host a Test match.

But the DDCA did not become a dirty place in the last few months. It has been run shabbily for years. To not allow it to host an important Test will not guarantee that recalcitrant officials will mend their ways overnight.

Yes, clearances are required from various agencies and most come directly under the MCD (Municipal Corporation of Delhi). There are some people who feel the current situation where there is a possibility Delhi may be dropped as a Test venue is stretching it a bit too far.

To be sure, cricket and politics are inseparable. So if the current crisis in the DDCA has acquired political overtones, the central government is not going to be a mere spectator.

The Delhi state government has already said it does not want to come in the way of the DDCA hosting a match and wants to deal with the many corruption issues which have been raked up.

One also knows that Union finance minister Arun Jaitley, who was part of the DDCA till last year, will be very keen the Kotla hosts the Test.

A word of caution for those who are running the campaign against the DDCA, former cricketers included: Keep the fight on against the DDCA, but not at the cost of depriving the city of a Test match.

Agreed, the number of people who turn up at the venue is dwindling. Do what you want to ensure the DDCA becomes clean, but if you think stopping a Test means it will curb corruption, it’s laughable.

The other day, Delhi Ranji captain Gautam Gambhir went to meet chief minister Arvind Kejriwal.

Many thought Gambhir had gone to speak against the DDCA but it was quite the opposite as the former India vice-captain made it clear through Twitter that he wants Kotla to host the Test. One just hopes that even after the Delhi Test, the campaign against corruption in DDCA will continue. A “swachh abhiyaan” here is a must.