IPL SHODDINESS What Else to Expect?

Here is a recipe! Start with a rave party in a five-star. Add blaring music. Add some serious alcohol (Vodka, Whisky, Beer, you name it!) Groove till 5 in the morning and then have men and women heading back to their rooms in groups. What do you get? A sinful dessert with carnal toppings! Yes, that’s EXACTLY what you get. A similar dessert was recently served at an IPL match in Delhi.

The fifth season of the Indian Premier League is nearing its end. More than the thrilling matches and dramatic wins, shoddiness is making the headlines! The IPL (Indian Paap League as one news channel mocked it) has already spawned a length of controversies. Merely a day after Shahrukh Khan’s fracas with board officials at Wankhede, molestation charges were pressed against Australian cricketer Luke Pomersbach. The complainant (an American woman) accused him of wrangling with her fiancé. Meanwhile, questions were also raised on the woman’s character. This is disturbing for us, both as individuals and as a cricket-frenzied nation. However, the real point is, was it really that unexpected?

Ever since IPL took birth in 2008, glamour has been its essential ingredient. From starry team-owners to enticing cheerleaders, the mood has always been celebratory. After-match parties, which the board bluntly denies, have forever occupied paparazzi attention. This is just one incident. After all, that is how a no-holds-barred celebration looks like!

The sports minister has come out to suggest IPL reforms like separation of politicians and BCCI, increased autonomy to IPL officials, etc. These recommendations may assuage the larger public but they fail to bear even the slightest of relation with the actual turn of events. How in this world is one supposed to relate politicisation of BCCI with assaults on women, that too behind closed doors? We all know the corrupting potential of politics and the debasing impact it is having on cricketers already infatuated by sudden windfalls. However, how will aloofness from politics (given it is possible) help solve issues of clear ethical misconduct? The Millions these cricketers make are enough to drive them wild, unless a strong ethical force restricts them. So, after excessive boozing, feasting, grooving and partying, what should commoners like us anticipate? Answers to India’s economic woes or ideas to tame global warming?

The cricketing League flashes a flagrant culture, indeed a misfit against our values of modesty and appropriateness. Today, our society stands at the edge of a cliff awaiting rescue. We are closer to sexual anarchy than we actually think. Women of today are victims of lust and eroticism. The feminine physique is scornfully commoditised. Women rights are used as a subterfuge to bring them to the streets so that lascivious eyes can feast on them. In this mad world, where everyone is a follower of countless whims and wishes, is there a lifeboat? Oh YES!!…The saviour is around. All we need is an unbigoted search for the truth.

This messiah I always talk of is ISLAM. Yes, you heard it right! Anticipating the challenges absolute libertarianism could pose, Islam decided to nip this demon in the bud. Islam discourages free intermingling of the sexes as it ultimately sets the stage for a sexually-overcharged society. It also prohibits the production and consumption of alcohol, the all-time spoiler. Sadly, labels of retrogression and dogmatism are thrown at Islam when in fact it liberated mankind from the shackles of misery. Islam sanctions un-curtailed expressions of sexuality and gifts unparalleled dignity and honour to women.

Let us say that the accused in this case is convicted and jailed, but will this be a deterrent for future offenders? The answer is NO. Islam, on the other hand exercises prevention by closing all doors that lead to such an offence. It commands men and women to fear Allah, their creator. Women are told to cover their bodies and hide their adornments. Islam commands men to lower their graze and holds them accountable over their women. It encourages marriage over illicit sexual relations. Islam separates the public lives of both sexes, not because women are inferior to men but because they are pearls. Only a dimwit can leave his gems unguarded!

Finally, the right path stands well illuminated. If we are to protect ourselves and our children from this evil, we must develop within us the courage to tread it.