CSK, Royals, Meiyappan and Kundra: Breaking down Lodha committee's IPL verdict

The Supreme Court-appointed Justice Lodha Committee has suspended the owners of IPL franchises Chennai Super Kings and Rajasthan Royals from cricket for two years and banned team officials Gurunath Meiyappan and Raj Kundra for life on the grounds that the former were liable for the gambling sins of the latter. Both Meiyappan and Kundra were found guilty of betting on IPL matches while being IPL team owners and thus violated the IPL’s rules and regulations while also bringing the game into disrepute. But what happens to the IPL now? And is N Srinivasan, father-in-law of Meiyappan, affected by the verdict? What about the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI)? Here’s the breakdown of the Justice Lodha’s IPL verdict and the punishment dished out to the guilty parties. Gurunath Meiyappan - Suspended for life [caption id=“attachment_2341654” align=“aligncenter” width=“825”]  Image Credit: Getty Images[/caption] The committee declared that Meiyappan’s behavior has brought the BCCI, the IPL and the game of cricket into disrepute. He was found guilty of betting and is suspended for life from any cricketing activities. He was also declared ineligible for participation in cricket for a maximum period of five years. Chennai Super Kings - Suspended for two years [caption id=“attachment_2341784” align=“aligncenter” width=“825”]  Image Credit: Getty Images[/caption] The huge development from the verdict is the suspension of Chennai Super Kings. India Cements, the company that owns the CSk franchise, is suspended from the IPL for a period of two years. The shares of the India Cements shares started dropping soon after the verdict. Raj Kundra - Suspended for life [caption id=“attachment_2341660” align=“aligncenter” width=“825”]  Image Credit: Getty Images[/caption] Rajasthan Royals’ co-owner Raj Kundra is suspended for life from cricket activities and from being involved with the BCCI in any type of cricket matches. The committee also declared him ineligible for participation in cricket for the maximum period of five years. Rajasthan Royals - Suspended for two years [caption id=“attachment_2341788” align=“aligncenter” width=“825”]  Image Credit: Getty Images[/caption] The RR franchise was also suspended from the IPL for two years. While pronouncing the verdict, Justice Lodha also brought up the three RR players who were charged with fixing in 2013 (Ajit Chandila, S Sreesanth and Ankit Chavan) and the alleged corrupt player approach before the start of the 2015 season, saying that it showed that the franchise wasn’t fine. Sundar Raman - Investigation pending [caption id=“attachment_2341666” align=“aligncenter” width=“825”]  Image Credit: Getty Images[/caption] The committee was also asked about Sundar Raman, the current IPL Chief Operating Officer. They said they need more time to complete their investigation since the officer entrusted to investigate retired and they had to appoint a new officer, who is still examining the matter. N Srinivasan - untouched by this particular verdict [caption id=“attachment_2341820” align=“aligncenter” width=“825”]  AFP[/caption] Srinivasan will continue in his roles as ICC and TNCA (Tamil Nadu Cricket Association) chief. Previous Supreme Court verdicts have barred him from contesting for the post of BCCI president and he also transferred the ownership of Chennai Super Kings to a trust. This particular Lodha verdict does not really affect him, technically. The RR and CSK players - free to join other teams [caption id=“attachment_2341828” align=“aligncenter” width=“825”]  AFP[/caption] As of now, the players attached with CSK and RR are free to join and play for other teams. Ajinkya Rahane, who is captaining India in Zimbabwe at the moment — and permanent ODI skipper MS Dhoni — are without an IPL franchise currently. If the IPL decides to float two new teams in place of CSK and RR, then a player auction could take place for these unattached stars. What of the next IPL - six teams? [caption id=“attachment_2341844” align=“aligncenter” width=“825”]  AFP[/caption] That hasn’t been decided yet. There are a couple of options here: the Supreme Court could force CSK and RR’s management to find new buyers for two already established brands, or they could ask teams to bid for two new teams. All this, because it would be very unlikely to have a six team IPL. And, erm, what about the BCCI? [caption id=“attachment_2341856” align=“aligncenter” width=“825”]  Reuters[/caption] The Lodha committee is still conducting its review of the BCCI. Justice Lodha said they had interviewed 40 or 45 people already and were planning to interview a few more. Once they had finished all the interviews, only then they could they recommend changes to the BCCI’s constitution to make it more transparent and responsive to the public. (With agency inputs)