Seeking to defend Lalit Modi in the IPL row, Union Minister Farooq Abdullah on Tuesday said the commissioner of the 20-20 cricket tournament should be given a chance to reply to the charges made against him in the controversy.
"Let us not become judges without hearing the poor man. If there is a charge against him, let him reply to them," the New and Renewable Energy Minister told reporters outside Parliament.
Abdullah, member of the IPL governing council, was asked if Modi should resign from his post in wake of the alleged murky financial dealings of the cash-spinning cricket tournament.
"It would be wrong for me to say whether somebody should go or not," Abdullah, also president of Jammu and Kashmir cricket association, remarked.
Asked if the BCCI was hiding the wrongdoings in the IPL, he said, "Nobody is going to hide anything. On 26th (after BCCI governing council meeting), everything would be clear. If anybody has to go, we will come to know about it on 26th."
On whether the government was witch-hunting certain individuals involved in the controversy, Abdullah said, "Why should the government witch-hunt. What has it got to do with witch-hunting?"
The Minister said fingers were being pointed at Lalit Modi due to the hype around the IPL. "That is why he is in trouble. That is why Shashi Tharoor is in trouble... handsome man," he said.
Abdullah had favoured Tharoor's stepping down as Union Minister following the IPL Kochi franchise controversy involving his friend Sunanda Pushkar. PTI
