The conflict tightrope

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The conflict of interest crisis gripping Indian cricket grows by the day. Questions keep popping up about the morality and legality of loose arrangements that the BCCI has not discouraged in the past five years since IPL began.
Indian captain Mahendra Singh Dhoni’s name now comes up prominently with regard to a serious issue of conflict of interest since he has owned shares in a player management company of which he is the prime client. The company also manages star players like Suresh Raina, Ravindra Jadeja and Pragyan Ojha, who have been actively promoted by Dhoni in the Indian team.
As captain of Chennai Super Kings and vice-president of owning company India Cements, Dhoni has always been in a most vulnerable position when it comes to conflict of interest. Now that he has been shown to have owned 30,000 shares (or 15.1% stake) in Rhiti Sports, according to ministry of company affairs filings, as on March 22 this year, Indian cricket’s scandalous disregard of accountability to the public is being further exposed.
On the Rhiti Sports issue, Dhoni’s childhood friend Arun Pandey declares that such shareholding by Dhoni was only done in a business context — to collect outstandings — but does that cut ice when so much cover-up activity is going on in the game? It’s also known that Dhoni has an equity interest, direct or indirect, in at least three firms of which Rhiti Sports is also a part. His passion for motorcycles is also reflected in his owning a stake in Rhiti MSD-N Motorsport India, which runs the MSD RN Racing Team that participates in the World Superbike Championship.
All this may sound innocent enough if Dhoni is not in a position to influence selection to the Indian teams he leads in the Test, ODI and T20 arenas. Former World-Cup-winning India cricketer Kirti Azad says, “There is definitely a conflict of interest in this case. Dhoni is also vice-president in India Cements. The board has to explain.” Former spinner Maninder Singh, says, “Players managed by Dhoni’s company will have an unfair advantage. Any sports management company would obviously like to see their clients in the thick of action in order to market them. Going by what’s happening, it seems morality has no meaning when it comes to Indian cricket.”
It had already been pointed out that Kris Srikkanth, who was chairman of selectors until September 2012 and also brand ambassador of CSK in its formative days, and Dhoni were the most influential members whenever the committee met to pick teams. Although Dhoni does not have a vote, his choice of players is endorsed by the committee almost in its entirety, save for one or two exceptions but mostly of players on the fringes of the team. Also, Mohinder Amarnath alleged that despite selectors having decided to remove Dhoni as captain it did not come about because a powerful board member, who is a well- known transgressor of conflict-of-interest ethicality, shot down the proposal.
For the record, the statement issued by Dhoni’s friend-cum-agent Arun Pandey, CMD, reads: “We at Rhiti Sports Management Pvt Ltd are greatly aggrieved at the widespread media reports regarding alleged conflict of interest of MSD. Though not obligated to, but in order to put at rest these widespread speculations, we are issuing the following statement to bring in knowledge the correct factual matrix:- “1. As on date, MSD holds no shareholding in Rhiti Sports Management (P) Ltd. However, it is made clear that shareholding was allotted to MSD on 22.03.2013 only to secure certain old outstandings which were due for more than one year.”
“2. Further the payments were cleared in April 2013 and the shareholding was transferred back to promoter of the company on 26.04.2013. It is made clear that the management of Rhiti Sports Management (P) Ltd understands its obligations to the field of sports and country, and adheres to the laws of the land.”
While Dhoni’s studied silence on the spot- and match-fixing scandal came in for critical comments, conjecture is growing on whether it is these conflicts of interest that are preventing him from coming out with his personal feelings on the issue much as Sachin Tendulkar had done. With all the new evidence coming up, Dhoni has a lot to answer for, so too BCCI, Chennai Super Kings and its owner India Cements.