The IPL-Kochi franchisee controversy took a new twist on Monday, setting the stage for a face-off between IPL commissioner Lalit Modi and minister of state for external affairs Shashi Tharoor, reports Times of India.
In a day of fast-paced developments, Modi was threatened with legal action by the franchisee, Rendezvous Sports, and received an admonition from BCCI for revealing who owns how much in Rendezvous.
Modi countered by accusing Tharoor of calling him up to ask him not to seek the identity of the Rendezvous stakeholders, though regulations make it necessary for the identities to be revealed to IPL.
Interestingly, one of the Rendezvous stake holders made public by Modi in his tweets is Sunanda Pushkar, beautician-cum-socialite, who is reported by agencies to be on the verge of marrying Tharoor.
Aides of Tharoor have refused to comment on the speculation on the ground that "it is an absolutely private matter".
Pushkar is said to divide her time between Mumbai and Dubai. According to Modi, she owns 18% of Rendezvous shares, though TOI could not confirm this independently.
On the agreement papers, she is said to be a resident of Jammu Tawi.
What lends intensity to the unfolding drama is the suspicion that the IPL bosses - unhappy with Rendezvous gate crashing into the bidding - may be pressuring it to vacate the slot for an established corporate entity.
The matter has taken on the dimension of a powerplay - not of the Twenty20 kind - with political circles buzzing about Tharoor lobbying Congress bigwigs to beat back the bid to get Rendezvous to leave Kochi.
Even if true, this failed to deter Modi from digging in his heels.
A combative IPL commissioner reacted to a letter of rebuke by BCCI chief Shashank Manohar by insisting that his disclosure of the Rendezvous ownership pattern did not amount to breach of regulations. In fact, he alleged that the Kochi franchisee had a "lot to hide" and "have lied about who is the actual owner of the shares."
