Pandya, Rahul slapped Rs 20-lakh fine

Tribune News Service

New Delhi, April 20

Cricketers Hardik Pandya and KL Rahul have been fined Rs 20 lakh each by the Indian cricket board (BCCI) Ombudsman, Justice DK Jain, for the sexist and gender-insensitive comments they had made in a TV show telecast in January.

The fine would be directed towards charitable purposes. Jain instructed that each player must “pay a sum of Rs 1,00,000 to each of the most deserving widows of 10 Constables in paramilitary forces who have lost their lives while on duty, through the medium of Bharat Ke Veer App”. Rahul and Pandya would have to deposit the remainder Rs 10 lakh each “in the fund created by the Cricket Association for the blind, for promotion of cricket for the blind”.

In their comments on ‘Koffee with Karan’, Rahul and Pandya had discussed their crushes, relationships and hooking-up with multiple women or even fans. 

Their comments had raised a storm of anger and protests, and the two were provisionally suspended and sent back to India from Australia, where they were when the TV show was telecast. The two were later handed provisional suspensions, which were removed after they tendered unconditional apologies.

When Justice Jain took over as the BCCI Ombudsman, the cricket board referred the matter to him.

In his order, he observed that the remarks made by the two players had offended sensitivities, “which ought to have been avoided”.

Deposing before Justice Jain earlier this month, Pandya said he had made the offensive remarks “on the spur of the moment, without realising that these could be disrespectful and may offend the sensitivities of the people”. Rahul took the same line, and pointed out that before this, he had never been involved in any controversy, on or off the field.

Incidentally, BCCI CEO Rahul Johri had also appeared before Justice Jain and expressed BCCI’s opinion that the two players had been sufficiently penalised as they had missed five One-day International matches. However, Justice Jain noted in his order that Pandya and Rahul must “make amends” and “purge his indiscretion”.

He observed that cricketers are "idolised" and "revered" in India and must act responsibly on and off the field. "These impressionable young adults try to emulate not only their style of playing but also their conduct and demeanour and therefore, they cannot be unmindful of the impact of their casual and off-the-cuff remarks," he wrote in his judgment. — TNS