New Delhi: Former cricketer and Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) MP Kirti Azad Sunday sat on a hunger strike with several other people against the way the Indian Premier League (IPL) was being managed, following a series of controversies hitting the tournament.
"I'm not against the IPL but the way it is run. There is no transparency, accountability or discipline. Why doesn't all this indiscipline happen in Test, one-day or domestic cricket matches," Azad asked while speaking to reporters at the Ferozeshah Kotla here.
"The unfortunate part is that there is too much of politics in sports. Politicians have got into the game and spoilt it. They should look at it as sportsmanship," he said.
"IPL, I suppose, is only entertainment ... but we have money laundering; we have violation of foreign exchange; we have a player slapping another; there was a sting operation for spot fixing; rape was left... that has also come in," he said.
"Somebody got drunk and went into the cricket ground where nobody is allowed to go after a match. This is a mix of intoxication and entertainment," he said.
IPL team Kolkata Knight Riders co-owner and superstar Shah Rukh Khan was on Friday banned from entering Mumbai's Wankehde Stadium for five years after his fracas with security guards and stadium officials.
On the same day, a Royal Challengers Bangalore player from Australia, Luke Pomersbach, was arrested for allegedly molesting an American woman and beating up her fiance at a New Delhi hotel. (IANS)
