A Bigger, Better, Transparent IPL Next Year, Says Chirayu Amin

Indian Premier League's interim chief Chirayu Amin on Tuesday  said efforts are on to clean up the scandal-hit Twenty20 event and promised a "bigger, better and transparent" IPL next year. 

"The job has just started and I am getting involved in it. Over a period of time, we will get into the details," Amin said in his first press conference after being appointed the IPL boss yesterday in the Governing Council meeting. Amin replaced the high-flying Lalit Modi who was suspended from the job barely a few minutes after the prize distribution ceremony of the IPL final on Sunday. 

"The show will go on. IPL IV would be on schedule and it would be bigger and better. The cleaning up is already happening. My job is to run IPL in the most transparent manner," he added. And he also has some changes in mind for the event, one of them being to stop the after-match IPL parties introduced by Modi. 

"I don't know about the cheerleaders but the IPL nights will be stopped," he said. Asked about his style of functioning, Amin said it would be there for everyone to see in the coming days. "I have my own working style which will evolve. Flamboyance has got nothing to do with cricket. Cricket is itself a religion, it sells itself," he said. 

Amin will also be interacting with franchise owners to ease their anxieties after Modi's ouster.

"My job is to interact with franchises and assure them that their investment is safe and will flourish. IPL management is under the radar but I don't think cricket is under scanner. IPL's brand image is strong, no one can touch that. It's a storm but it will pass," he assured. Asked about missing documents on franchise bids and TV and internet rights, Amin said the matter is being investigated. 

"Nothing is out of control. There has to be a total of audit of things. Some documents are missing and the Board is looking into it," he said. Amin conceded that the event's Governing Council erred in trusting Modi too much and should have kept an eye on the suspended Commissioner's functioning. 

"The success of the IPL was so dazzling that everyone was basking in its glory. Certain details were not disclosed to us in all this. We trusted Modi in good faith. I have to admit that the Governing Council could have been more vigilant," Amin, himself a council member besides being a BCCI vice-President, said. Amin said he never thought he would be given the job. "The job is tough. It has been thrown up to me unexpectedly. I didn't expect to be put in the hot seat," he quipped. 

Amin, who is the owner of pharma company Alembic, takes over as the IPL chief at a time when the league is battling allegations of money laundering, benami holdings in the franchisees and tax evasions. "We will maintain full transparency. There is no hanky-panky. BCCI is a democratic set-up. We are doing utmost to make it work," he said.

Chirayu Amin has conceded that the event's Governing Council erred in trusting Lalit Modi too much and should have kept an eye on the suspended IPL commissioner's functioning. 

"The success of the IPL was so dazzling that everyone was basking in its glory. Certain details were not disclosed to us in all this. We trusted Modi in good faith. I have to admit that the Governing Council could have been more vigilant," Amin, himself a council member besides being BCCI vice-President, said. 

The low-profile Baroda Cricket association president has replaced a man who was known for his flamboyance. Amin said he never thought he would be given the job.
"The job is tough. It has been thrown up to me unexpectedly. I didn't expect to be put in the hot seat," he quipped. 

Amin, who is the owner of pharma company Alembic, takes over as the IPL chief at a time when the league is battling allegations of money laundering, benami holdings in the franchisees and tax evasions. But Amin said the show will go on. 

"Cricket and the IPL will go on. The players interest will be take care of. They will enjoy playing cricket. The owners of the franchisees will also flourish," he told a news channel.

Asked how he plans to clean up the mess, Amin said, "We will try to make it a system-oriented management of the IPL. The government is looking into various issues and the BCCI and the IPL are supporting them. Some documents are missing. BCCI and IPL are trying to reorganise themselves so that we have all the documents. 

"We will maintain full transparency. There is no hanky-panky. BCCI is a democratic set-up. We are doing utmost to make it work," he said. PTI